A Hundred Scars Upon our Hearts
by Japyra
Summary: A classic story of love, irony, promises, and broken hearts. Two people, two shadowy pasts, and a hundred scars. But then, in a story where one is Seto Kaiba, perhaps covalence is not discovered by the perfect, but the healing touch of two broken souls.
1. A Day in the Life

Title: A Hundred Scars Upon the Heart (A Seto Kaiba love tale)

Main Characters: Seto Kaiba, OC, Yugi/Yami

Summary: Seto Kaiba: A frigid-souled CEO whose heart lies hidden except in the innocent eyes of his brother. Kestrel Amun: A charmingly polite founder who brings smiles to all those around her while only showing her biting pain to the understanding face of her adopted daughter. Fate brought them together, but with each carrying scars along their hearts, can these two opposites learn to love again? A classic tale of romance, irony, and possibilites.

Warning: This will not be a cliche, love-at-first sight tale. Why? Because Seto Kaiba is in it. Also, with him as the main character this fic is rated teen for dark material, brief sexual comments, and violence. No sexually explicit scenes will be shown, but while this story stars out light, there are going to be some dark chapters. I will warn you before then, but if you don't like it, don't read.

Disclaimer???Who thinks I own Yu-Gi-Oh?

§

Love. Sometimes love comes at us hard and leaves us shaking in its aftershock. Sometimes love strews from grief. Other times love captures our heart strings slowly. Other times love wheels forth by kindness. True love however, well that is rare.

This is the tale of two different people, leading two different lives, and many unseen secrets. And in a trial that pushed their will to survive, their strength over their fear--somehow they found true love. And it all began with two plotting children and one pointless magazine…

_This month is our annual bachelor and bachelorette selection! We travel across Japan to find you the 10 most suitable, single men and woman. Then you vote on who should be the # 1!_

_After several months of polls, the results are in! Japan, you have voted, and here are your top twenty:_

_Woman_

_10. Anne Cauldwell: This 30 year old inherited quite a chunk of her uncle's fortune. A inheritress in career, this woman loves to golf and her powerful shots are only beaten by her manor's size…_

_9. Celia Magnatine: An 18 year old supermodel with a promising career ahead of her. This stunning beauty is still young and shy, but with a constant cash flow and many call-backs she'll be a poster child for all things soon! She currently dwells in a well-furnished condo in the city(See next month for an exclusive interview with Celia)_

_8. Ally Steambanks: At 25, this woman is quite a catch. Though she has chosen our fine country of Japan for residence, her roots travel back to the European countries. In fact, she is the second-birth princess of England. Her mother, Anne Steambanks is the current queen of England, while her brother Luke is in line for the throne. This noble-blooded woman keeps most to herself with her amazing wealth…_

_7. Mary Sinnger: Mary is our oldest of the line-up at 42, but don't let that keep you away! She still has much of her beauty and charm from younger years, and holds the title of head designer for several companies. Her work is seen all around the world from her own line of Sinnger shirts and dresses. Very feminine, she's always ready to woe any unwary men. But who wouldn't love her?_

_6. Mai Valentine: Mai is our youngest bachelorette, being 17. However this beautiful woman has plenty of spirit. She is the top female duelist in all Japan, competing in the ever-popular game of Duel Monsters.(See pg 13 for the current rankings and announcements in the Duel Monster world) Not only is this woman skilled and simmering, she has a firecracker soul. Ready to take on anyone, anytime she is the ultimate seductress…_

_5.Bridget McCarthy: Our own famous novelist! Yes this 27 year old has already come out with bestsellers such as, The Life & the Love, The Eyes of the Swamp, and Black Swan.(See our Reader's Choice for other great books this fall) Her play on words is only bested by her skills as a single mother. A poetic, graceful housewife she is calm and collected for her age, with a beautiful three-year old son named John. Loaded with money from her writing skills, she prefers the less-dense country area of Japan, waiting for a lucky man to make her life whole…_

_4. Serena Callahaun: If you don't know this name, you don't know Japan! This 21 year old pop-star is an international hit! And who is to argue? Perfect Black curls and bold make-up. The only thing that bests this star's looks is her voice! With her latest album, Siren's Calling, she managed to produce another song to top the charts with "Come and Find," A high-wild streak she loves the clubs and a good time! Only a few guys can keep the beat with this saucy singer…_

_3. Sophie Courdeua: 32 years old and still kicking! A much more toned-down chick than most of her competitors, she still holds her own at # 3 in our charts. A clever woman, she won the Nobel Prize last year for her work on the human mind, discovering how to effect REM and in essence, control it. REM being of course, the part of our mind that works in our unconscious. Out-spoken on her views on saving the environment and nuclear energy, this clever vixen spends most of her time in her own laboratory or under the press light's…_

_2. Tallulah (Tammy) Rw'Ankh : Our second-best bachelorette! Aging 18, her qualities are many. Tammy is first, the only daughter of a South African King. She came to Tokyo to study pop-culture and fashion and became an actress. Her latest film, Silver Stones, (See Movie Reviews for more info) gained her significant popularity for her charming character Shade. A beauty to be sure, her acting career took off two years ago and she now holds her own vast wealth. A strong love for the life of the rich and famous, Tammy enjoys large shopping sprees and extravagant parties. A play-girl by nature, she has more suitors then shirts yet this woman keeps her cool when it comes to men…_

_1.Kestrel Amun: And here you have it! Our number one bachelorette for the year! Japan voted and we tolled, so here she is! Kestrel is 19 years old and already has a firm foundation. Where should we begin on her? Besides being a truly beautiful woman, she is CEO and founder of one of Tokyo's largest companies: Mikagi Medical Co. The multi-million dollar company not only owns the best hospital in Japan, its extensive staff design new technology to help in medical practices. What does this make our # 1? Loaded. However despite her many board meetings, she manages to find time to help out other people. Kestrel is the adoptive mother of a little girl. Her records show that she is a qualified doctor, in fact the best ranking at her hospital. This woman has traveled quite a bit before settling down in our own Tokyo! So she's clever, rich, beautiful, kind.. Oh, and it's rumored that she is extremely event-tempered and charismatic to all people, even those we'd rather not be._

_Well that's all for the females. Let's go on over to the other side for the top 10 males…_

_Men:_

_10. Gregory Dunnevon: Starting our bachelor countdown is Gregory! At 26, this famous actor has the looks--sleek, dark hair, stunning eyes, strong jaw… and look at those abs! He started his river to stardom thirteen years ago, only a kid! Of course, this handsome bachelor has quickly grown into a fine actor!(See page 11 for more on his latest movie)_

_9. Vin Hammer: At 34, this body-builder is one hunk! Totally steroid free and a slight health addict, this man's body is enough to prove his devotion to the gym. The only thing that matches his deep dedication is his honorable views on woman. He is renowned for protecting… even the shadiest of woman, stemming from his simple rural roots. Protector of all innocence, this kind fellow just needs a partner as dedicated as he is…_

_8. Vann Gustafa: He's are oldest at 39. This man came to Japan after leaving Germany on shady terms. Of course, we all love a bit of wild-life right? Filthy rich from sources unknown, Vann is your classic playboy. He love's the nightlife and we hear his day-life isn't that boring either, as he manages for several celebrities. Plenty of charm to go around, this man will sweep you off your feet with thousand-dollar dinners, gold-tongued charm, and excelling dance moves. Only one lucky woman will be able to keep him though…_

_7. Connor Rightmen: Alright, enough with the crazy guys eh? We need some down-to-earth sweethearts. That's where Connor comes in at 18. He's a young, innocent man with a prospecting future in poetry. Many of us are already familiar with his work such as, "Heaven I Have Found," "Crow's Love," and "Tears for Autumn". An angel with words, this heavenly man comes from a moderate background, adopting traits of shyness and simple hospitality. This is the bachelor most likely to save the world, and smile doing it. Your classic nice-guy and we hope he won't finish last…( View our Selected Work of the Month for his poem, "Smile Runaway".)_

_6. Ricky Silverstein: In his 21 years of life, this soccer-star has won two grand titles for Japan. Rugged, athletic, and talented to million dollar contracts this man is a find. His famous shots are trademarks around Tokyo and you can find Ricky's face almost anywhere. Because when this champion isn't kicking soccer balls he's kicking back the drinks at local bars--always ready for a thrill. A definite adventure, Ricky's legacy goes to amusement parks around the world, white-water rafting, mountain climbing, and he even spent some time as a volunteer firefighter. He has a two year old son, the child's mother died in birth and Ricky took him in. Number six leads a promising career, has a great taste for fun, and knows a little bit about being a good daddy and tucking the kids in at the end of the day. (Last Month's issue featured his exclusive interview and statistic of his team.) What more could a woman want?_

_5. Carmen Diago: Half-way through our listing and we hit 20 year old Carmen. This bio-chemist developed some of Japan's top military weapons. Instead of brutal guns and bloody battles, he works with diseases and poisons for a quicker, cleaner victory. A bit bizarre? We don't think so--Carmen's a classified A genius. With an IQ pushing 180, his specialties are mathematics and chemistry. Days and nights are spent mostly in this scientist's home lab, but when he does come out it is always with a new discovery. This man is brimming with bucks. He has more than one million-dollar contracts with the government, not to mention private buyers. He has been runner-up for the Nobel Prize twice with his medical militia. A slight zealot against guns, this nutty professor often warns against the damaging effects bombs and tanks have on civilians and landscape. An excitable, rich, genius--near perfection!_

_4. Cole Cascade: Last name sound familiar? That's right, this 28 year old bachelor is the son of the famous Soran Cascade. Soran of course, was an international performer--putting on spectacular shows ranging from practical magic to defying gymnastics. He served palettes such as the King of France, the 1st Lady, and more than one Prime Minister. Like father, like son as it goes. Cole has taken on the heavy shoes of his father with superb affluence. A man of many traits, whether it be sky-diving, rock-jumping, fire-wheel driving, or bear wrestling he does it all. A charming smile, infectious laugh, and warm eye all round out with the fact that Cole is toned beyond most men's dreams. As fantastic as a performer as he is, Cole is always ready to sit down and have a good laugh with a few friends. (Turn to back index calendar to find out when he'll be coming to a theater near you!) A polite partier, this daredevil knows his stuff and learned from the best. With his father's wealth pouring into his own, this guy's got no lack of income. He just needs some girl to spend it on…_

_3. Brian(Baine) Wolfe: Anyone not know this name? Brian, or his stage name Baine, has been the top male artist in Japan for three years and running. No one can outstrip this hot 22 year old guitarist. Known best for his celestial face and capturing voice, he's a real rock star. This man can sing your heart from you with his voice of inlaid silk and carefully carved fingers strumming the acoustic guitar. From a high scream of pain to a low moan of sorrow, this rock star can do them all. He's so good, why would he even need a band. Brian's record deals have made him a multi-millionaire. He loves the clubs, but has run into some trouble with the cops a few times. But hey, where is law when you have someone like him? Our third bachelor is well-versed in the ways of seduction from playing sweet songs to making the bold moves. His core of rock is a sexy appeal to an already great hull. Who will be the one to tame this free guitarist?_

_2. Yugi Motto: At 18, Yugi's our youngest bachelor by three months. But that doesn't keep him from snapping second place. Among many qualities, he blazes the title King of Games. He is the international champion of our popular game duel monsters. This man may come from a simple past, but his future is promising with already so much recognition. The famous tri-colored spikes have captured quite a few hearts before he's only done with High School! However who could blame them? Despite all this attention and victory, Yugi continues to stay modest--always putting his faith and balance on something he calls 'The heart of the cards,' (Have a favorite catch phrase? The most famous and infamous are listed on the next page.) This earnest man continues to teach everyone he encounters a real life lesson, and his determination and grit are matched only by his unwavering loyalty. He would make a devoted, trusting, and working partner for anyone. While not big on the flow of cash now, his dueling career will soon take flight along with money reservoirs. And who could resist the seductive baritone voice and dreamy violet-red eyes?_

_1. Seto Kaiba: Your # 1 bachelor for the season is none other then the 19 year old Seto Kaiba! What do we have time to say about this man? To begin with, he is the CEO of Kaiba Company, inherited by his adoptive father. Seto began running the company from a young age and took it from warfare to gaming. Currently, he is the main producer for the game Duel Monsters, and also one of its best competitors. In fact, the only person to ever beat him in a match is none other that our # 2 bachelor! Well Seto you beat him at this game! Because between running a company and playing in tournaments, he finds time for his younger brother. Kaiba Corp is one of two large producers for Duel Monsters. As such, it brings in a lot of money. Also, our favorite CEO is the head designer of all his projects. He is a genius with technology, creating things we could only dream of. Besides all that, this man is stunning to see. He is the 'pinnacle of eye-candy' as my co-editor described. Wonder what's hiding behind his trademark trench coats. The other lore to this guy is that he is a great mystery to the public. Facing the press on strictly business information, nothing is known about his personal life. We never see him go on dates, but who has the time between a kid, a company, and a competition? Known for his mysterious gaze and stubborn, unrelenting attitude this is one man who doesn't take offense laying down. He's not afraid of coming out of his high office to face problems, and charges head on with a calculating head. What amazing woman will ever get past the mystery that is Seto Kaiba?_

_-Excerpt from Tokyo Pop, Issue IXX_

§

We begin this story mere months after the incident with a certain man named Darts and several ancient legends. Due to the strange and dangerous behavior of the duel disk and cards produced by Kaiba Corp, the company was suffering some looses. And this is the time when fate begins to deal…

§

Seto Kaiba was sitting in his private office, a sterling black laptop resting on the table in front of him and a steaming coffee cup in his free hand. A frown that lit up to his cold blue eyes played on the reflection of his own face on the glowing screen. A red, blue, and yellow pie graph glared back at him laughingly.

_Down another two points…_

The CEO gritted his teeth in frustration.

_Ever since Yugi and his little friends started that magic trick with the dragon my company has been paying. 'Save the world' what a load of bullshit. _

Angrily, Seto maneuvered his mouse to check on his new amusement park. Kaiba Land had always been Mokuba and his dream and he was very persistent in checking up on its progress. The income slide of bars was climbing steadily upward, raising the viewer's mood slightly.

_At least something is going well._

Thoughts of Kaiba Land led his straying mind toward a certain black-haired boy. Glancing down at the watch, the concerned brother noted it was half past six.

_Mokuba should be getting up soon, I better go down and sit at breakfast with him._

The blue-eyed teenager has not eaten breakfast since Gozubora had been in control. His stepfather had given him a great distaste of the morning meal and his work kept him from ever rectifying that. But every morning he would walk down the stairs for coffee and to sit and listen to his brother chatter about school and friends. It looked like a patiently bothered adult pleasing a naive child. But between the two brothers, it was a brief moment together before the day took them off onto different paths.

Rubbing his temples, Seto threw his white trench coat back over his broad shoulders and froze his face into the cold frown he was trademarked for. Striding down the stairs, he looked superiorly over the many rambling employees screening around. None dared to cross their employer.

He passed through the threshold of the dining room, coming past a long entertaining table to a smaller, finely made table of mahogany. Here, Mokuba was sitting eagerly awaiting him with wide same-colored eyes. A table that would sit eight was filled with dishes of deviled eggs, blackberry crepes, honey-glazed scones, and crystallized fruit. A single, oversize mug of black coffee was positioned in front of the elder's seat, along with a fine china plate that had never seen use. On the other hand, as soon as his brother sat down the younger began to pile his chosen food onto the plate and talk at a rapid pace.

"…and today at school we're going on a trip to Mikagi hospital. They said a new student has high connections with the Mikagi company and got us in…"

Sipping his coffee and surveying his younger brother Seto usually input only a few words.

"That's a large company to make connections with at 13."

Mokuba nodded in vigorously, silent between his bites of pancake and scone. "I know, I can't wait to meet him."

"Hn," Was the brunette's only reply.

Finishing his plate, the raven-haired boy checked the large digital clock beside him.

"Uh-oh, I have to go Seto or I'll be late. See you later bro!"

He nodded, not needing words to tell his brother to be careful or that he loved him. That was established back in the orphanage. As Mokuba sprinted out to the limo, backpack in hand, Seto switched into CEO mode. It was time to work. Grabbing his drink with him the blue-eyed man swung from his seat, striding up the stairs.

"Mr. Kaiba," A sweet voice called to him from the stairs, followed by a petite woman.

"What is it?" Her employer replied in cold irritability.

"Mikagi corporation is on the phone for you. They wish to discuss your newest holographic technology."

_A medical company?_ Seto thought while he replied in his frigid monotone voice. "Put them on line 9 and hold all my other calls."

"Yes sir," The woman replied, walking off to do his bidding.

The man turned, striding back up to his office, pulling up his laptop again and seizing his private phone while placing down the hot beverage.

"Seto Kaiba, CEO of Kaiba Corp speaking." He began to show dominance and using his chilling voice to add a little fear into the other line.

However, the voice that replied was smooth, calm, and polite. "I am aware of who you are Mr. Kaiba as I called you. I am Kestrel Amun, CEO of Mikagi Corp."

Taken slightly aback by the sudden wit of the words, in the back of Seto's mind he noted that the speaker was female.

"Look I don't care who you are. You're wasting my time so tell me why you called or get off the line." The brunette replied with a low growl of annoyance.

"Certainly Mr. Kaiba. I value my time as highly as you do. I would like to discuss about your new holographic technology--the kind you use in duel disks that gives the image a feel and substance, making it more realistic."

"I am familiar with my own work Ms. Amun." He was smirking slightly on the phone. This woman had no idea who she was dealing with.

"Good, then you know just what I mean. I am interested in purchasing this technology from you and applying it to my own inventions."

The 19 year old man let her words wash over him. _This could be a big break, but I can't let her discredit my work in any way…_

"What use does H187 have for Mikagi Corp exactly? Don't you work in the medical field?"

There was a faint pause in the other line, and Seto read it easily. She was debating how much to tell him of her plans.

"Using life-like holograms has high value in surgery work."

The elder brother caught on quickly. "You intend to use it in training--modifying it to reenact the human body to help teach surgeons."

Another pause, and even corned the woman's voice remained untouched and polite.

"I do,"

Now the blue-eyed duelist was in his element. He was in control.

"I propose a bit more than a simple purchase Ms. Amun." He began, his smirk evident in the smug tone of his cold voice. "The second-rate idiots you have working at that hospital have never dealt with something like the H187--"

"I have complete faith in my employees capabilities." This time Kestrel's voice had a tinge of anger.

"Cut me off again and you'll never see it." Kaiba snapped back.

"Then do continue Mr. Kaiba. Your wasting my time dawdling."

The orphan had the urge to break something. He was not as in-control as he thought. Though it seemed Amun needed him, she also knew that he needed her. _Damn stocks. _Checking his anger with complete control, Seto smoothed out his voice to a deadly chill and spoke again.

"Nonetheless, I propose that I build you your hologram system rather than sell my model to you. It can have any specifics you might need, and then you can purchase that one from me."

It was not a bad deal and there was no hesitation in her once again mild-mannered tone.

"Agreed, we should work out details such as price and the specifications of the model face-to-face. How is tomorrow for you?"

"I am unavailable except between six and eight."

"Very well, I shall meet you at… say Shichimencho Café then?"

Amun had been bold deciding the place, but once again Seto mastered his annoyance.

"Alright, Goodbye Ms. Amun."

Click.

Leaning back on his swiveling desk chair, the CEO of Kaiba Corp considered this upcoming. By selling her specific technology he kept his company from becoming part of the medical field, which he had no interest in. The design would also bring good publicity and a source of high income for the company.

_Not too bad for a phone call. Though she was an excruciatingly vexing woman._

But he didn't contemplate it long. The laptop spilled pale light from its spot, reminding him of the work that needed to be done. With a sip of coffee, Seto Kaiba continued his day.

§


	2. Upon Bird Wings

_Now that she's back in the atmosphere_

_With drops of Jupiter in her hair, hey, hey_

_She acts like summer and she walks like rain_

_Reminds me that there's time to change, hey, hey_

_Since the return of her stay on the moon_

_She listens like spring and she talks like June, hey, hey_

_-'Drops of Jupiter' performed by Train_

§

Kestrel Amun dropped the phone back into its socket, rubbing her head angrily.

"What a jerk." She said in her soft angered voice.

It was that damn Scorpio in her, making her snap back at him. She had controlled herself to a point. But still…

_I can't let him get to me tomorrow. There is no point in fighting with Kaiba, I need his technology._

Taking in deep breaths she checked herself, only to find a familiar man at her doorframe.

He was tall and balding with a crown of black hair. Spanish descent left him with a strong jaw, sharp nose, and dark eyes set in golden skin. Large lips and ears gave the middle-aged man a slightly foolish look, but no one who had been on the biting end of his temper ever knocked the suited man.

"Montague what are you doing?" She asked in a polite, if tipped voice.

"I am being an excellent employee and checking on my employer." When he spoke his forehead lines wrinkled deeper.

"I am fine Montague." Kestrel stood up.

She was an average height for her age. 19 years had graced the woman with a natural beauty. Her skin was smooth and flawless, the color of dark porcelain. Her hair was a golden rich blonde with faint steaks of red catching in the light. Amun's face was defined with a smooth, angling jaw, straight nose, a crowning forehead, and high, slight cheekbones. Eyes a bright amber nearly resembled in namesake. In all, with her slender, curving frame she was a picture of fun and passion. Except for those clever, bright eyes.

"I have never approved of your definition of fine, Ms. Amun." Montague's voice had an accent, but was firm and playful in tone.

"Really, I'm sorry to hear that." Kestrel had resorted to her mannerism, signaling that the silver laptop she was gazing over was far more interesting.

"Ms. Amun it is time for you to take a stretch I think." The older man persisted.

Glancing up at the taller form she gave a bare smile with silky lips of coral. "As your employer don't I give you orders Montague?"

He smirked a little. " Quite right, however knowing that our friendship assures my position I am free to inform you that after skipping breakfast and lunch again you need to take a break and preferably eat something."

The female CEO gave a fake sigh as she shut her laptop and stretched.. "One of these days…"

"Your going to bottle me up and ship me off to Africa I know." The quirky worker said impatiently,

Shaking her head and moving the straight sheet of blonde hair, forcing the longer side-bangs into her eyes Kestrel walked gracefully to the door. "What exactly do you do around here again?"

Looking completely severe the balding man replied as he shut the door. "Someone has to look after you. Ms. Amun you would starve yourself in forgetfulness to eat and then who would pay my large salary?"

This time the blonde laughed softly. "I suppose. I'll grab a muffin from breakfast on my way out."

Seemingly assured, Montague left his employer alone as he walked down the hall to tend to some other business.

In a happier mood, the founder of Mikagi Corp walked easily to her door and picked up a blue-dotted muffin on her way out.

_I could use a walk around the park. Anyway, Kaiba irritated me so that in the time I take to jog around I will have cooled off and can get back to work… I did want to finish that project though and Talla will be angry if I skip dinner as well… Maybe I'll tell Montague to put another coffee pot on after dinner and work though the night. I need all the specificities for my hologram by tomorrow and I have a board meeting in the morning…_

Her thoughts never ceasing, Kestrel jogged calmly around the downtown park, enjoying the scenery. Tall shoots of bamboo cast a green, lively light along the paved trail circling around a smooth fountain of marble. Creatures formed from the white rock, a hunting tiger with darker stripes was cloaked by upshots of clear water. A large bird-of-prey was flying on the top terrace, shooting water from its beak. And in-between at the middle terrace there was a smaller panda cub, chewing on a jet of water that shot in between its paws.

She paused to look at it feeling whatever anger was left in her dissipate with the streams of life-giving liquid. Turning he head from side to side, casually observing her aloneness before turning left and off the paved path. Her smooth, quick steps led her through the surrounding bamboo. Her slender frame, only partially cloaked by the button-cup white shirt, brown blazer and striped gauchos, slid between the long, sturdy shoots and through soft dirt that scuffed her clogs. But with little concern for her appearance, the blonde continued through the forests until it abruptly thinned. Her soft footsteps halted, feeling at last pacified and content.

_I wonder how Talla is doing her first day at new school…Her fieldtrip should be done soon… I should have toured it but…No, she doesn't want to draw too much attention to herself as of yet…_

_§_

Mokuba Kaiba sat in his assigned class seat, behind the desk and surveyed the new student with curious blue eyes.

_Talla Amun,_

She was still only 12, and bore no resemblance to her adoptive mother, but was nonetheless a cute girl. Her light brown hair was done up in a simple ponytail, one or two of the shorter strands left loose were beaded in green complimenting the soft, but dark green-hazel of her eyes. Her skin had a warmer undertone and darker shade then his, but still far from bronze. A smooth face had petite features and slightly large, round eyes giving her an air of innocence. Her form was thin, just coming into its own curves and her smile was sincere if slightly shadowed..

"Class today everyone is touring Mikagi hospital thanks to Ms. Amun so be sure to thank her." The thin, smiling face of their homeroom teacher said in her capturing voice.

There were muffled agreements and Talla was set free by Mrs. Haden. Her eyes wandered between rows of people an empty seats, her step sure and confident against the many eyes. Finally settling on a seat, she made a right-hand turn and sat herself down next to a black-haired boy.

Mrs. Haden began talking again, about safety precautions and ideal behavior on their trip.

"Hi, my name is Mokuba Kaiba." The blue-eyed boy said, always bearing his last name with pride.

The brunette beside him gave a surprised blink. "Hello, and I suppose you already know my name after that."

The younger Kaiba grinned back at her. "Talla Amun, right."

Talla gave a low laugh, concealing it behind her hand as their middle-aged teacher went over disciplinary actions.

"…And the second warning is an immediate removal from Mikagi property…"

"So how did you get us this trip anyways. Mikagi doesn't usually give private tours of the hospital does it?" Mokuba asked in a whisper.

As if she had wanted this question asked the girl beamed at him. "Well I know the CEO."

"Oh, that's cool. The CEO of Kaiba Corp is my big brother Seto." The boy replied with the slightest boast.

Although she didn't seem that impressed, Talla smiled. "Kestrel Amun is my adoptive mother, though she is really more my sister."

Mokuba tried to picture the CEO of Mikagi company. They were quite large and popular and he was sure he had seen her picture somewhere…

"Here," The younger Amun interrupted his recollection by producing a wallet-sized picture from her backpack.

Staring at him from the bright photo was an image of Talla herself, long hair down to her lower-back, the bangs un-beaded to be tucked under her ear. The girl was smiling in her designer-cut jeans with brown embellishments and cream-colored shirt with a brown sash delicately inlaid and pinched shoulders. Both her hands were grabbing onto a taller figure. This person was a woman, her dark blonde hair shifting with red in the bright light. Her face was beautiful, and only one wild eye could be seen as the other was covered by long bangs. The woman was laughing openly, trying to fight the pull of the girl's arms in her jeans with small black and bronze writing. A sleeveless black shirt fit with golden lace on the back. They were standing besides a marble fountain, spurting wet drops along the ground and a sushi stand's sign pocked in the left at the photo. The sky was clear and downing toward evening in smoky hues of violet-orange.

The clothes and faces told the Mokuba that this had to be Kestrel Amun. He suddenly knew why the woman and child were more like sisters.

_Kestrel's too young to be Talla's mother…She can't be any older than Seto._

"It's my favorite picture of us together, so I always carry it." The green-eyed girl responded to an unnecessary question as the two students stood and walked out the room following their class.

"I understand." The cerulean-eyed boy replied with a nod, pulling out his locket to show her the picture of his brother and him younger.

Amun observed the photo. "He must be older now though, but it's a good picture."

Mokuba clasped it away, unable to fully return her smile.

_I don't have any more pictures of Seto like that… Because he doesn't smile at all anymore._

As if sensing the darkening mood, the younger began to talk again. "Kaiba Corp is a huge company. You must be really proud of him."

Her words banished all his bad thoughts and the slightly older child nodded with a proud glaze in his eyes. "Yeah, my brother's the best. He works it all out on his own, and even though other people don't always understand him I know my brother is always there for me."

Talla winked. "Me too! Kess built Mikagi company from the dirt. She's a lot busier than usual, but she always makes time for me. Although I must say that your brother can't be the best… Kess already is--though I'm sure they can share that spot." The girl added hastily when she saw an argued, slightly angered look in her new friend's eye.

The black-haired boy smiled when he was sure there was no knock on his brother's name. Free to continue the conversation as they were now loaded onto a classy, city bus he questioned more about the tour.

"So is your sister giving the tour?"

Good-naturedly the pre-teen shook her head. "No, she offered of course but I told her not to worry about it."

Catching the protection on her adoptive mother's character, the teenager could not imagine why. If he was giving a tour of Kaiba Corp he could not trust any of those employees… he would want his brother to give it, unless he was busy of course.

"Why didn't you want her to?"

At this point, for the first time in their conversation the girl's face darkened a little and her voice dropped low as she tried to give a casual shrug.

"Just… don't want to draw that much attention…"

From what Mokuba Kaiba had seen of Talla Amun, she had no fear of the spotlight. Perceiving what was a tender subject though he let it drop.

"Well what do you like to do?"

And that is how Amun and Kaiba first became connected.

§

A/N: The beginning of each chapter will usually have a song. The first one did ot because it had the magazine prologue, but that is just a little head's up.


	3. Echoes of a Storm

_Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah  
There's all these cracks  
Crack of sunlight  
Crack in the mirror on your lips  
It's the moment of a sunset Friday  
When our conversations twist  
It's the fifth day of ice on a new tattoo  
But the ice should be on our heads  
We only spun the wheel to catch ourselves  
So we weren't left for death _

And I was never looking for approval from anyone but you  
And though this journey is over I'll go back if you ask me to

I'm not dead just floating  
Right between the ink of your tattoo  
In the belly of the beast we turned into  
I'm not scared just changing  
Right beyond the cigarette and the devilish smile

_- "I'm Not Dead" by Pink_

§

_He pulled on a crimson robe, preparing himself for a walk along the Nile. Today had been especially stressful with the border patrol loosing more men to guerrilla warfare._

_**What could these outlanders want? **He wondered to himself. **They have never attacked before.**_

_**…And then there is of course, Kakra**…_

_A longer frown spit upon his handsome, drawn-out face and lines appeared on his smooth forehead. He was automatically striding down the stone steps, his feet carried him through smooth marble hallways lit with torches as the sun gathered its last reach over the golden land. But his mind was on something else._

_**The High Priest turned up a fortnight ago, battered and headed toward the next life, but still he has been recovering. Where as Kakra has not even been found…**_

_Shaking his head to try and rid of these thoughts he inwardly chaste himself while nodding to a lower-level priest dressed in a white robe. _

_**I have no time for personal thoughts… not even about her. There is a war upon my country and that must be my first priority!**_

_Eyes scanned over the sights, finally taking in the scenery. Two guards walked a little ways behind him, glaring at any person and the occasional rock near the man they guarded. His sandaled feet patted through the warm layers of sand surrounding the flowing river. A skiff was pulling in, its painted stern lashed to the land by several ropes as more men, dark-skinned and wearing nothing more than ivory cotton, cut down to their knees and starting at their waist. Muscled legs and chest showed years of toiling boats up and down the Nile. _

_**These people all depend on me, I must not let them down! Even if something has happened to Kakra…**_

_His thoughts turned darker and worry scratched for another opening into his mind. **If anything does happen to her, I could never forgive myself.**_

_There was a growing dread as his thoughts grew upon the woman. As if some ominous presence had grasped his heart, he felt nearly sick with dread. Keeping his face a strong and encouraging mask in front of the villagers he strode back to the palace as quickly as possible without causing concern. _

_**I must ask Isis if she has seen anything concerning Kakra…perhaps the Sennen Tauk has been cleared around her…**_

_He thought, still having a strong sense of foreboding. The guards trailed after him, as he swept through the gates. His pace quickened, turning down the entry hall to the left where his own court kept their chambers. Striding through the long corridor he made a strong right, pacing into the wide room for the High Priestess's use in meditation, reflection, and at times a little magic. Respecting her privacy, he knocked twice on the iron door. There was a moment of shuffling from inside the room and then the door swing open, revealing a woman._

_She was average-height and her skin was a delicate shade of bronze paled with yellow. An ivory shift of fine cotton showed off her slender, curving form. A cloak of the same material clasped onto her shoulders by gold brackets. Her features were an artists' delicate with a small, straight nose, wide, curving eyes, arching cheekbones, a defining chin, and a noble-blooded forehead. Long, obsidian dark hair was bound in two golden bands and the famed gold of the Millennium Necklace was the woman's only other ornament. A picture of tranquility, ruined only by the mists of worry in her eyes._

_With a short bow she spoke. "My Pharaoh does something trouble you?"_

_He nodded and gave her the High Priestess a small smile. "Isis, have you been able to see anything concerning Kakra?"_

_Isis opened her mouth to speak, but then suddenly a familiar, annoying ringing noise interrupted her._

Yugi Motto woke with a start, panting heavily as the phone beside his bed rang in its ultra-hyper tone. Slowing his racing heart the teenage boy glanced at the flashing red clock hanging on his wall.

2:45, the world was mocking him.

He heard his grandfather's voice pick up on the answering machine, politely asking for a name and number.

Settling himself back into the navy-covered bed the spiky-haired prodigy sighed before looking over to another presence. It was almost his identical, except taller, leaner, and more mature. Age darkened his other's half's crimson eyes.

"Yami was that your dream?" Yugi asked, mentally replaying the visions while they attempted to scurry away.

The transparent pharaoh was standing on the end of his bed, his head on his hands in deep thought.

"Yes Yugi, I feel it must be a memory from my former life."

Sensing his companions frustration through the bond the senior attempted to soothe him.

"It wasn't a bad one thought, it had some great scenes from Egypt."

Yami broke into no smile, his thoughts on something else.

"Yes but I was thinking about someone else… someone named Kakra… who was she? What happened to her? There are so many questions I have that don't have answers."

Puzzling on this for a moment the boy's face brightened a little in the dark room. "Well the High Priestess Isis looked a lot like Ishizu. We can go to Domino Museum tomorrow and see if she knows anything about it."

His transparent self managed a slimmer of a smile. "Your right Yugi, thank you."

"No problem." He muttered, rolling back in his bed for a few more scant hours of sleep.

§

Shichimencho Café was currently catering to two very important guests. The kissa-ten was a newer, popular, and refined atmosphere for the more upper-class of customers. But never before had two people as famous or infamous had walked through its shining glass doors as Seto Kaiba and Kestrel Amun.

As such the coffee house was in a small uproar in the back of the marble-set counter. The manager yelled at frightened employees to set up the table for two--using the finest white linen, and changing new cushions on the black-liquored chairs. Of course it was still only a coffee house so food and service was little to be worried about, but presentation was everything.

Kaiba had arrived first. He wore designer black pants held with a silver-buckled belt and a pale shirt that was barely tinted with blue. Straps on his arms in a fine black, tied with silver-blue added to an intimidating, if gorgeous appearance. His stony cerulean eyes surveyed the kissa-ten with his impassible mask showing nothing more than slight contempt and annoyance. A silver briefcase carried in one hand, the imposing CEO allowed a slightly stuttering man to lead him to the table before departing.

Shichimencho Café, a large sign overhead read in curving letters while showing a full menu of different beverages and pastries. Frowning, the brunette opened his briefcase and pulled out a laptop, re-briefing himself for his meeting today with Amun. His eyes darted at the clock on the wall.

_She better be here on time! I will not wait in this crowded place all day!_

His thoughts began to run off the screen.

_Why did she choose a coffee house anyways? It is so public and distracting--what happened to actual office meetings? What kind of person does she take me for?_

The more Kaiba's thoughts ran the angrier he became until the clock struck six exactly, chiming in the hour as the man thought a thousand deaths for Amun if she was late. He was currently imagining shoving a hot mocha onto her head when at the last second of 6:00 p.m. Kestrel walked in.

The former CEO had strode in and glared in silence at anyone in the vicinity. The current one smiled and chatted a little with the nervous man who led her to the table. She turned her head and that was when Seto first laid eyes on Kestrel.

The woman was wearing a warm, cocoa-colored skirt that had darker auburn-red ribbon tying its waist and extending in patterns and designs along the knee-length bottom so that a few pieces hung off in an abstract form, while in the back it tied with a long, red piece that flowed smoothly down the entire length. A crimson shirt, short sleeved and ornamented with only with crossing brown-and-red strings that wound up from her wrist to shoulders matched with her golden hair splendidly as the pale blue brought out Kaiba's eyes.

Kestrel studied him as he did her and it was done in enough time for a blink and a handshake.

§

Kaiba ordered straight Peruvian espresso. Amun took a hazelnut cappuccino. And that was how their meeting started.

"I assume you have the personalized details ready for me?" The blue-eyed CEO said in an almost accusation tone.

Picking up on his shrewdness, the blond replied in her own mannerly, curt voice. "Of course,"

She passed a stamped folder over to him, surveying the man from over the top of her sweet drink.

_What a jackass..._

Seto flipped through the design, mentally checking off what he would need for each modification while another part of his brain was categorizing the woman in front of him

_She is a hooker. That is how this lady built her company up at 19. She slept with every bastard CEO and board person she could find._

"When can it be finished?" Her tone was naturally carrying and smooth.

The brunette glanced up at her with a rose-shriveling glare before spitting out an answer.

"The body design will take me a few hours to input with all your details. Give it a few more days with the simulators, a week with the test lab... three weeks."

"Can you not do it in two?" Kestrel replied calmly, almost baiting him.

"Not with a company to run." The male teen told her with a smirk.

Who would loose control first? What a deadly, fun game to play.

"Ah yes, I have noticed that Kaiba Corp is on the rocks." The female CEO fought with claws.

"Yes though I notice it still surpasses that of Mikagi Co." But the blue-eyed man fought with teeth.

"Getting into a more worthy line of business often has that risk." Okay, now the cocoa-eyed being was pissed. It vibrated in the air despite the short coolness of exchanged words and masks.

However Seto was fuming. Leaning closer to her face, the man locked in a battle of gazes.

"I did not consider my line of work less valued then yours."

And for once as long as the 19-year old could remember, someone met his gaze with the same intensity.

"The world needs a hospital more than a game store, Kaiba." She had dropped the surname.

"Which is why they spend more money at the gaming stores, Amun." Two could play at that game.

"Not all people measure their gain purely on revenue." The brown-clad person's voice was now detectably angry,

The pale-faced being gave a sarcastic laugh. "Facts, facts are all that matter at the end of the day."

A certain silence fell over the two. Two emptied coffee cups, one vanilla folder, four pairs of steeling eyes and the aura was think enough to be eaten. Finally Kestrel swooped in for the kill.

"I am sorry that you had some a pathetic childhood that you are now a cold dick, unable to believe more than what you can see."

_Childhood..._

The unbidden, long hidden image of Gozubora's first lesson cropped up into Kaiba's mind.

_No that bastard is long dead, though how dare she bring up those memories._

The technology prodigy no longer cared if the woman opposing him knew about Gozubora or not. All he knew, was that she just stepped over the line.

"What? Did you learn psychiatry in protestant classes?"

Apparently the brunette had also struck a tender point.

"Yeah keep those thoughts to yourself and the porn you pervert!" The sun-kissed woman hissed with a rivaling death glare before swinging out the door.

_So be it._

_§_

Mokuba fidgeted slightly in his seat. He was waiting for Talla to enter the room, so he could ask her.

_Why wouldn't she say yes?_

But despite his kind-hearted soul, the younger Kaiba did not have many friends. He had never let himself have many. After all, Seto didn't need any friends. But Talla was a mini ball of fun. She was all smiles, spitfire, and sweetness(most of the time). And if anyone in the world could understand his brother even a little, he knew it would be the girl. After all, she had an older sister who was a CEO as well. So the boy had finally decided to let her in. 12 was a good age to finally get social.

However when she strode into the room, beaming as her cocoa locks swung around in the braid she had done for today. Her vivid green tank-top and embroidered jeans stuck out a little, but she could hardly care less as she sat beside her friend.

"Hi Mokuba!" The hazel-eyed girl winked.

"Om... Hi Talla," The onyx-haired child managed to speak.

Sensing his discomfort, the adoptive girl cocked her head and furrowed her eyebrows in a questioning look.

_Kaiba's don't get nervous!_ The Japanese boy yelled at himself. He forced the nervousness to go away and smoothed out his words.

"Talla, do you want to come over after school today?"

To his surprise, the brunette suddenly pulled back, appearing suspicious. Anyone else might have made their answer to the question and contemplated its meaning in silence, but the younger Amun was not somebody else.

"Are you asking me on a date?"

The blue-eyed one blinked in rapid surprise, sure his open mouth was looking quite comical. Forcing himself to take a slightly more dignified, while still wide-eyed expression the younger brother managed to shake his head before sensible words came out.

"No! I mean, well your nice and pretty and all but I don't really want to..." Rambling, sensible words.

But the younger sister was smiling again, apparently all at ease as soon as she knew what her friend has wanted.

"Sure I'll come over. What were you so nervous about if you were just asking me to hang out with you?"

Barley managing to keep himself from blushing, Mokuba returned to normal speech, relaxing as his female friend did.

"Well... its always been me and Seto. He was always busy with the company and never needed friends. So I always felt like I should be like that too, you know?"

Her eyes told him that she did, but her smile was telling him that he was wrong.

"It is always good to respect and love your brother, but I doubt he wants you to become him."

"And why not?" The dark-haired boy demanded. _I want to be like Seto._

She smacked him playfully aside the head for his tone.

"Because your brother is sacrificing his time so you can have a real life. It would be a bad way to pay back by not living the life you are given."

§

**Death is what separates mortals from gods.**

_And now that I have conquered death, I am a god. _He thought with an inner chuckle.

_They all thought I was done in for. They thought that I had died. Poor old man, died of a heart attack. It must have been the depression and shock... No, I do not break that easily. The brat manipulated all those around him! I was used! _The force behind the thoughts became crazed with fury.

Another silent laugh.

_No, I must not let the brat get to me. I will have my revenge soon and that kid will wish he was dead when I am done with him. The little ingrate, I'll make his life hell with this plan._

Thoughts rolled onto images as he called the plan that had been so carefully been laid over the last two years.

His death had been avoided in truth, but now he was in this prison. A simple item for almost five years now. But then that fateful day when he found a way to escape his chains. He had begun to loose, hope. He had thought that all eternity would be waiting him here. A god in hell. And then he was found, sought out by another.

_"I know who you are."_

_"How did you get here?"_

_"I imported myself into this virtual reality with the help of some new technology that just came out on the market."_

_"What do you want?"_

_"Your asking the wrong question."_

_"Is that so? Well then what should I be asking?"_

_"What I can do for you."_

_"... And what can you do for me?"_

_"I can set you free."_

_"... How, my body died?"_

_"Are you interested then?"_

_"Hm, just what are you proposing?"_

_"Always the businessman, I see."_

_"Say your plan quickly or I will permanently erase your mind."_

_"Well then you would be stuck here until someone hacks that computer of yours."_

_"..."_

_"Now that I have your attention, allow me to tell you how I will release you. Your mind is still intact, correct?"_

_"Of course,"_

_"So all you need is a body."_

_"A live body without a conscious,"_

_"I can give that to you."_

_A trickle of cold laughter. "And how would you attain such an item?"_

_"... I have told you my proposition. Look through Egyptology in that database of yours to learn my methods if you will. I will return in three days time to here your answer."_

The man left the virtual bench after that and left the other staring up at the fake cloudless sky, hungering for the real one.

So he had spent three days looking into every ounce of Egyptian lore, fact, and image his endless source of information could find him. He stored it all in his now digitalized memory. If he could find a way for it to be done... If he could find fact that such an item could be created... Then there was no questioning this stranger. So he searched and learned until the end of three days.

_"Hello again,"_

_"Hm,"_

_"I see your not as talkative."_

_"Let's get to the point."_

_"Alright then, have you decided to take my offer?"_

_"It's called shadow magic."_

_"...You've done your research."_

_"It can send a person's conscious to another realm."_

_"..."_

_"However most of it is seeded in myth and it is said only a rare few possess it."_

_"I am fortunate enough to have been granted that power."_

_"Through a Millennium Item?"_

_"... You certainly open all doors."_

_"Hm, Alright I can buy that you are able to bring me a body but why?"_

_"Is that really important? You'd be free."_

_"And yet in debt to you. What are the strings?"_

_"...Hardly trusting are you?"_

_" The trusting are slaughter for the wolves."_

_"I see, well then if you must know I desire only two things."_

_"Stop dawdling over it!"_

_"I will need two years to prepare you a suitable host."_

_"Why? The transfer technology is available in this very room and the spells work instantly."_

_"Because I have no use for a simple person and I doubt you could live as one. You see I have no immediate plot for you once you are free. But I am sure that there will be a moment when I need someone has powerful as you on my side."_

_"I am an aiding asset then."_

_"Yes,"_

_Another dark grin. "I was once the manipulator and now it seems it may be the other way."_

_"I will only ask for one favor."_

_"How do you intend to bring me back as I once was? My body was destroyed."_

_"You have a son."_

_"Oh yes, the brat was stolen away by his mother. I heard she had died and the kid probably too."_

_"He is alive, and your blood flows through him."_

_"What is your point?"_

_"My magic goes farther than mind separations and soul sendings. By altering and intensifying the boy's ow blood I can make him look like you except 20 year younger. That is, if you don't mind your son's spirit being sealed away and his body meddled with."_

_"I couldn't care less. Just do it."_

_"We have a deal then?"_

_"... We have a deal."_

And now the two years were almost over. How he waited, so patiently for his vengeance. And now the two years were coming to an end. It was only a month away from that date. Soon...

Gozubora Kaiba would return.


	4. Fury of the Elders

_Circling your, circling your, circling your head,  
Contemplating everything you ever said  
Now I see the truth, I got doubt  
A different motive in your eyes and now I'm out  
See you later  
I see your fantasy, You want to make it a reality paved in gold  
See inside, Inside of our heads (yeah)  
Well now that's over  
I see your motives inside, decisions to hide  
_

_Back off I'll take you on  
Headstrong to take on anyone  
I know that you are wrong  
Headstrong we're Headstrong  
Back off I'll take you on  
Headstrong to take on anyone  
I know that you are wrong and this is not where you belong  
I can't give everything away  
I won't give everything away_

_-'Headstrong' by Trapt_  
§  
I know, I know all about your motives inside, and your decision to hide

Domino Museum had a last trickle of visitors, making final rounds before the 5 o'clock closing. A platinum-blond curator was making his way around the rooms, warning people that the building closed in ten minutes. He was mindlessly saying the words, thinking more about the new motorcycle that the downtown shop was selling.

_It would probably look good in chrome, or maybe the gold-violet combo... Yeah, and then I could get—_

His daydream was startlingly interrupted by a tall, crimson-eyed figure that had suddenly appeared in front of him.

Blinking twice in surprise, the lilac-eyed teen managed to give a polite nod.

"M-My pharaoh what brings you here?"

"Marik," Yami replied with his own nod. "Do you know where your sister is?"

Doing his best to ignore the awkwardness, the youngest tomb keeper thought for a moment.

"Ishizu is in her office. I will go get her for you Pharaoh." The light-haired Egyptian gave a mental sigh of relief.

It wasn't like he hated the spirit, but he had been possessed and made the man's life hell... It wasn't exactly easy to make polite small-talk, even after he had apologized. After all, how much does 'Sorry I sent your best friend to the Shadow Realm, tricked, and betrayed you' mean?

"Ishizu?" The younger Ishtar called into the paper-stacked, white-paneled room.

The blue-eyed oracle turned to her brother. "What is it Marik?"

"The Pharaoh is here."

§

Mokuba climbed out of the limousine, quickly followed by Talla. The brunette paused, surveying the manor with green-hazel eyes of interest.

"It's big," She summed it up in two words.

The black-haired boy would have been very surprised at her anticlimactic observation of the sprawling mansion a few week ago. However he quickly learned that she did not get awed by shows of wealth. The girl lived with a wealthy CEO herself, after all.

So the younger Kaiba simply grinned at her. "It's home."

The adoptive daughter smiled back, and her eyes danced. "I'll race you to the doors."

His own blue eyes ran quickly along the carefully pruned path to the house. The flame of competition lit up inside him.

"Your on!"

With a laugh the two children sprinted down the pavement, winding around as their feet slammed into it. The cool wind picked up and licked their faces, drawing back their hair. Innocent eyes wide with adrenaline as their bodies pelted hard along.

Talla slammed hard into the door, making her stumble back and hit the ground panting between laughs and words.

"I... won." She gasped out, rubbing her arm where the heavy metal had smacked down.

Mokuba had been at her heels, but managed to stop and lean down, panting as well.

"That was stupid." Okay, he was a sore loser.

Amun slapped her friend's leg for his temperament, but she was still laughing as she pulled herself up.

"So?"

The younger brother looked up, confusion and surprise written on his face.

_Seto, he never does anything stupid like race... I never used to do anything so immature either._

"Well, it makes us look bad." The student replied slowly.

The sister turned from playful to serious in a blink, sensing his mild confusion.

"Mokuba, you never played like this have you?" Her eyes suddenly bore into his reddening face.

"Well, not since the orphanage...I'm not a kid, you know."

"... What is so wrong with being a kid?"

There, she had done it again. This girl, who he had known for only a month, was able to shake his foundations on everything. Being immature was for losers. He was a Kaiba, he had dignity. He needed no one except his brother. He would run the company with his brother. That had been his life. And then she had come. And he had forgotten he was mature, that playing was stupid. He had forgotten because she hadn't cared.

"I..." The black-haired boy could not find a reason really, why it was wrong. It just had been.

"Mokuba," Talla called him from his thoughts. "No one has ever told you, but its okay to play and live. In fact..."

A shadow had crept upon her lips as the darker-toned child looked away to the sky. "happy moments like these..."

The female looked back at him, yet the shadow still pulled at her features. "are what makes life worth living.

§

"So, Egypt was at war, the High Priest had been in an accident, and a woman named Kakra?" Ishizu relayed everything to him.

Yami nodded, feeling soothed by the tomb-keepers calm aura.

Her blue eyes were intense, but not hyped. Yugi was right, if anyone could help him it was the curator.

"And you said I was the High Priestess, and you had come to me to find her, although I had been unable to?"

Again, the spiky-haired man shook his head, biting his tongue to keep patient. He was a great deal more at rest, but he still wanted answers.

The blue-eyed Egyptian paused, closing her orbs as the quick-paced mind traced through all the manuscripts she had ever read.

_Don't snap._ The pharaoh told himself firmly... or had that been Yugi?

Slowly, the cage of black lashes released. "The name itself sounds familiar, however I cannot place it with a face or event. If you wish however, I could look through text for any notion of her."

"Yes, please." The 5,000 year old hastily spoke.

The seer nodded, then said one last thing. "Do tell me if you have anymore of these dreams. Your discovering your past, and it has been my family's duty to help you with that."

Yami thought back to the obviously uncomfortable Marik. "Yes of course... and Ishizu,"

The black-haired woman waited calmly for him to continue.

"Thank you."

§

Kestrel Amun stormed into her manor, eyes flaring. Employees scurrying around stopped to stare shamelessly. Sweeping past them all, the blond sprinted up the curving stairs and swinging into her bedroom.

The room was large and high-ceilinged. The ivory walls were accented with a complex border-design in deep blue. An ornate bed-frame of black-lacker wood twisting at the headrest and end with an embracing sun and moon supported a downy mattress. The blanket was a complementing shade of dark azure with an ivory sun-and-moon symbol as well. A Victorian-style chestnut closet stood against the wall. On the opposing wall, the ivory had been covered by a painting to resemble Van Gogh's most famous work. A cherry wood dresser lined up against the south wall, next to a large, wide window. The dresser sported some cosmetics, a hairbrush, and a few stray necklaces. But most of it was given up to small ivory sculptures in different forms—a flying kestrel, the repeating sun and moon, an abstract mother-daughter. The silver mirror gleamed amidst the rosy wood of the dresser. A blue-end table with black and white writing ornately drawn upon it held several pieces of medical equipment, and a chart. A shelf against the third wall was stacked with organic herbs, incense, pewter bowls, and labels. Somehow, the abstract mess was pleasing to look at, somehow it all matched up. Just like its owner.

Kestrel's mouth spewed long chains of strange, crafting words as she shifted through the chart on her table. She continued flipping pages angrily until the presence at the door would no longer be ignored.

"What do you want Montague?" Her tone was not angry, but exasperated.

The Latino simply eyed her with faint amusement. "I have come to see what has you so angry Ms. Amun."

Breathing deeply and forcing a smile onto her face, the CEO replied. "I am fine Montague."

He just looked at her, raising his eyebrows. "I have never approved of your definition of fine, Ms. Amun."

The familiar phrase made some of the medic's anger dissipate.

"My apologies," She said softer.

"You were cursing in French. The last time you did that it was when some lady brought in a rabid dog that attacked Dante. What has happened this time?"

_Anger it seems, makes pushovers of us._ The founder thought before beginning to talk in elevated tones.

"Kaiba, he is... an egotistic prick, all he thinks about is money! That man must be a medical phenomena because he is alive without a heart... and he gives you this look! He is..." The rest suddenly became spoken in another language.

The patient employee waited for a few moments before calmly inputting. "French again."

Stopping immediately, Kestrel breathed in deeply and then released. She closed her eyes and counted her pulse. _1,2,3,4,5..6..7..8...9...10. _Each moment she took a slower breath until she felt her heart stop hammering and her anger fell into unimportance.

"Little matter, where is Talla?" The elder sister asked.

"She is over a friend from school's house. Shall I send a driver over to pick her up?"

The woman nodded but added, "Yes, tell me when the chauffeur is ready Montague. I'll go with him."

§

Seto Kaiba yelled at his limousine driver for not driving fast enough. He made a snide comment to the guard at his gate, and lectured Rolland about security. Then he walked up the stairs to his office, and pulled out the black laptop from his briefcase.

_That... pathetic, emotional, aggravating... _The CEO thought savagely as he clicked on the income page.

_Sappy, flaring, cheery..._

Stocks went down two points.

"Damn it!" The elder brother finally hissed under his breath.

_We did make a business agreement... As long as she isn't stupid enough to allow personal thoughts into business I should still make her design and get paid for it... _

With a few more thoughts, slightly clouded by the many, very nasty, things he would like to do to Amun, the blue-eyed man shook his head, a few longer locks falling into his orbs.

_I won't allow some woman to interrupt my thoughts. I have more control then that!_

To take his mind away from fury, the teen looked around his office. It was more his place then his bedroom. The walls were an off-white and paneled. The desk he sat at was titanium, with a large and smooth surface. The black, swiveling chair he sat at matched and black picture on his wall, the diagram of his new amusement park. An end-table sat against a wall, made of titanium silver as well. It sported a high-tech coffee pot steaming with fresh java.

A metal rack upon the other wall held a collection of thick books, instruction manuals, and hand-written plans. A black pen and clean notebook rested on the edge of his desk along with the signature coffee mug.

It all matched with perfection, from the black-white contrast to the silver furniture. Control, power, modern—it reflected its owner. And somehow, it was nice to look at.

A faint beep on a black phone beside him made the now only slightly irritable man frown.

"What is it?"

"Mr. Kaiba, Mokuba has requested dinner early since his friend must leave soon. The table is ready for you now." The clear, pretty voice sounded emotionless on the phone.

_I should go down and eat with them. I will work on this later._

With that the elder brother shut down the laptop and walked down to the awaiting table.

§

Mokuba had taught his friend his favorite game in the world, duel monsters. Talla, he discovered was an impatient learner. Fortunately, he was so passionate about the game, her simple errors and fidgets went by without care. He only managed to get by the basic rules before the cocoa-haired child held her hands up in defeat and said that they should simply play a game and he could point out her mistakes. She had made a few, and the blue-eyed boy had won every round. However, the shorter one was not stupid. She worked determined, and having fun. Until the clock chimed seven and she warned him that her sister would be coming to pick her up soon. So, being a gracious host her friend had ordered dinner. He had to smile at how she was more fascinated by paper cards then the fine array of gourmet food.

"I wasn't sure what you liked to eat so I asked for a large spread." Mokuba admitted, looking down the smaller table.

Talla shrugged and smiled. "Thanks, I am pretty easy though."

"My brother should be down soon." The black-haired boy added with obvious excitement.

The hazel-eyed girl winked as she sat down. "I finally get to meet the famous older brother, huh?"

"I guess so," A cold, monotone voice made her swivel around.

Kaiba finished descending down the last of the stairs, smirking at his entrance.

"Big brother!" His only family called happily to him. "This is my friend from school, Talla!"

Deep azure eyes set upon the small girl. She looked back at him without fear, almost observing him.

_She reminds me of someone..._The CEO thought, hiding a frown as he took his seat. _Who though?_

_His eyes... they are so cold. And why can't he smile? Is this the big brother Mokuba always raves about? He is so... distant._

At once, the boy began plying food on his plate. Following his lead, both man and girl began to select food onto their plates.

_That look... who is it that she reminds me of?_

_Why isn't he talking?_

Oblivious to the mounting tension, the link continued chattering on happily about what he had been doing today and how he was teaching Talla to play duel monsters. The sound of his favorite game brought the elder back down to the dinner.

"You've never played duel monsters before?" He asked with a slight smirk.

Returning his smirk with a glare, she replied. "I move around a lot, and I don't have time to get into any tournament games."

"Really?" The black-haired younger blinked at his friend, finding out this new piece of information. "Where have you been?"

Relaxing with the conversation directed by her friend once more, the girl ticked off fingers as she thought.

"France, America, Egypt, Jamaica, and Mexico."

The fellow student was impressed.

Deciding to try mannerism for his brother's sake, Kaiba spoke up again between bites of shrimp and oregano scampi.

"How did you like the game?"

Talla felt his piercing blue eyes on her.

_He is nothing like his brother._

"I really like it, it is a lot of fun!" She smiled still at him.

"She's learning really fast Seto!" Mokuba added.

Sensing his excitement, the duelist decided to try to be... nice.

"You can open the vault and use those cards if you want."

She nodded politely.

"Thanks bro!"

Rolland suddenly entered the room, his expression pensive.

"Mr. Kaiba,"

Turning around with an annoyed expression, his employer snapped back.

"What is it? It has better be important."

Holding his ear-piece closer the employee relayed the message.

"There is a car here to pick up the girl. Should we let them in?"

"Why didn't we send her back?" The brunette demanded.

Feeling her anger stir, the girl-in-question helped the poor man.

"My sister wanted to meet Mokuba, so she offered to come and get me."

Glancing back at the speaker, the businessman allowed his lackey to get away this time.

"Send her in."

§

Kestrel placed down the folder she had been looking at when her driver came to let her out of the door.

"We have arrived, Ms. Amun."

The amber-eyed woman blinked. She had been looking through the folder the entire time. So observed in her work, she hadn't realized they stopped.

"Thank you, I'll be out in a bit." The blond promised, striding into the building with observant eyes.

_It is so... plain._ She noted the lack of art. Sure it was grand in an expensive, modern way. The CEO shrugged it off.

_To each their own._

Her feet traveled up the cement, and a happier thought popped into her head.

_I bet Talla ran along here._

Smiling once again, the doctor met a suit-wearing man at the door.

"I am to lead you in."

Giving him a friendly nod, the still skirt-wearing figure followed the employee into the house and to the dining room. She stepped in and all three people caught her eyes.

Two acts happened simultaneously.

Her adoptive daughter beamed and waved her sister-figure over.

Seto Kaiba tensed in his seat and uttered the word, "You?"

"Huh? You two know each other?" Mokuba asked, bewildered at the sudden rise in tension.

Talla looked between the two CEO and cocked her head.

"You are her sister?" Kaiba demanded as though accusing her of something, remembering his anger.

Feeling her fury rise again, Amun spat back.

"Why is my sister with you?"

"Kess!" The girl cried out in surprise.

Her guardian's bird-colored eyes fell across her, softening even as the oldest Kaiba kept his firm questioning.

"I assume you still want me to build the model."

The next sentence she said in a whisper, and it was somehow much more warning than a yell.

"Of course, the product cannot take th blame of its maker."

He glared a painful death at her but the elder Amun forced herself to focus on her sister, though her fists were clenched.

"Who is your friend?"

The younger gave a worried look at her sister and nodded over to Mokuba, who had the same expression as she did.

"This is Mokuba."

Kess managed to give the boy a smile.

"It is good to finally meet you Mokuba."

"That is the worst smile I have ever seen." He was smirking again.

It was the smirk, she decided after word, that made the rival lose it.

"And how the hell would you know? You don't even know how to smile!"

Seto rose out of his seat angrily. "Maybe you just don't give me reason to smile."

"You know... the rule of not blaming a product for the faults of its maker... I'll have to apply it to your brother in order to like him." She challenged with flat toxin.

"Hey!" Mokuba got up and his words chorused with that of Talla, both glaring at the other sibling.

"Like my brother would want to like you!" He snapped back.

"No, I suppose if he is like you he would be more of the anti-social type now!"

"Wench, watch your mouth about my brother!"

"Prick, go drown yourself!"

"Is there a problem?" The suited-man had re-entered the room, looking dumbly at the two company-owners, both clenched and glaring torture at each other, and the two angry, children glaring at the opposing elder.

With a great amount of restraint, and forcing herself to focus only on her child, the medic managed to utter out reasonable words.

"No, we were just showing ourselves out."

"Bye," Talla said sadly to Mokuba before trailing after her elder sister.

"Bye," He replied softly, feeling hurt.

Someone hated him.


	5. A Kestrel Signed Name

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-gi-Oh or its characters. Nor do I own the book Under the Tuscan Sun, which is an awesome read!

§

_I've got it all, but I feel so deprived  
I go up, I come down and I'm emptier inside  
Tell me what is this thing that I feel like I'm missing  
And why can't I let it go _

There's gotta be more to life...  
Than chasing down every temporary high to satisfy me  
Cause the more that I'm...  
Tripping out thinking there must be more to life  
Well it's life, but I'm sure... there's gotta be more  
Than wanting more

_-'More to Life' by Stacie Orrico_

§

Mokuba Kaiba possessed one of the world's finest cell-phones. Naturally, being a Kaiba meant you had high-tech gear, and the he prized it. Until now, that is. When it went off in its monotone ring at three thirty-six in the morning.

The beeping persisted as the boy grumbled, thinking ill of the small black device as he stumbled out of bed. The downy covers fell onto the floor, and a pajama-clad child walked a few steps to the end table. With groping hands in the darkness, he found the offending item His fingers slid it open.

"Who is this?" The blue-eyed younger asked with his brother's best I'm-going-to-beat-the-shit-out-of-you tone.

There was a pause on the other line and the listener almost hung up when a small voice asked, "Mokuba?"

The black-haired boy's eyes shifted to the calling information. The number was familiar.

"Talla?"

The speaker replied with a much more identifiable accent. "Phew, Mokuba you sounded just like your brother for a second! Jeez, you scared me!"

Happiness welled inside the 12-year old as he heard his friend.

"You called!"

"Yeah, sorry about the timing." They both knew she wasn't.

"It's okay, sorry about... you know."

"Don't be, you didn't do anything."

"...I wasn't sure if you would still..."

"Mokuba, just because I don't like your brother very much doesn't mean I don't like you." The younger Amun said with laughing exasperation.

"So, why did you call?" The orphan asked with curiosity.

"Well, I figured it would be really hard for us to hang out if our siblings hated each other." Yes, the brunette was certainly direct.

"Probably," Her friend replied with inherited sarcasm.

"And since I still want to hang out with you, we only have one option."

The younger Kaiba was suddenly reluctant. Talla was his only friend really, but she had wild ideas that he would certainly not be willing to do...

Answering his silence the hazel-green eyed girl continued on. "We have to get them together."

Not what he was expecting to say in the least. "Have you gone brain-dead? They loathe each other!"

Her voice was pouting. "Exactly, that is why we have to get them to like each other...or at least be civil!"

The idea of making his brother do anything he didn't want to was not appealing to the adoring younger. "What exactly did you have in mind?"

"A kind of setup. We lure our siblings together on the pretense of going out somewhere with us. Then we meet up, and force the two to work out their differences." The adopted daughter was scheming quite well.

"Seto is really busy though Talla." Mokuba said softly, not wanting to ask his elder away from his company.

"He won't even go away for a while with you?" The girl asked in a softer voice.

It could not have been clearer what his friend thought of his beloved older brother. And this time, he was determined to prove her wrong.

"Of course he will, what is the time and the place?"

"Noh theater, tomorrow in time for the six-thirty showing." Talla sounded relieved.

The darker-haired child blinked. "What show is playing then?"

"It is based off a book. It's called _Under the Tuscan Sun_."

§

A harmoniously featured woman was plying through several stacks of yellowed, crusted papyrus. Her delicate fingers grazed over their thousand-year old creases like a caring mother, scanning for any sign of the elusive woman. Deep cerulean eyes read over familiar, care-worn text for the name Kakra. She had been at it for several hours, but that didn't face her. If her Pharaoh had come today and asked for her life she would have given it. That was the kind of devotion she had. That was the kind of person she was.

_Kakra..._The hidden word echoed in her mind again. _It has to be in Atem's time period, and also before my own incarnate's death. A war... there was a war going on in most of his reign... Kakra._

Ishizu worked on through the night, using her small, heat-less LED lamp in her semi-circle office. There were still so many manuscript she hadn't checked, but the pile she had gone through was certainly adding up. But suddenly her trailing index-finger stiffened, and brushing eyes halted in the search. At the point of her finger was the five-letter word,

_Kakra._

Not moving her hand from the spot, the seer read through the rest of the papyrus scroll, beautifully kept by its wax bathing and underground tomb.

_This came from the High Priest's tomb. _The historian noted carefully.

The passage below burnt itself purposefully into her memory. Deep orbs drifting over to the wall clock, the Ishtar woman allowed herself an ironically bittersweet grin.

_He did seem very urgent for information, after all. I doubt he'll mind a little late night call._

Re-rolling the thin parchment, the elder sister carefully slipped the text into one of her dress pockets as she strode out to use the museum phone. The words she had just deciphered still ringing in her mind.

_How interesting this will prove to be, especially to our stubborn CEO._

§

_"Atem?" Her voice—playful, intelligent, passionate—called his name softly in the safe confines of his private chamber._

_He turned to her, away from the star-dusted sky and dimming bronze shimmer of the city he had been observing from his ivory-carved balcony. _

_A woman was approaching him from the receding darkness of night. Her tawny-colored hair framed a face of free passion, and bird-like eyes stared out from arching brows. The slender body was shown in the soft folds of the cotton shift she wore. _

_"Kakra, what is wrong?" He asked, noticing the concern that shadowed under her smooth cheekbones. _

_She didn't reply immediately, but chose to stand beside him at the balcony, staring off at the rolling dunes that glittered like stardust and the washed-out buildings of Egypt, filing together while a few tiny stragglers made their way around sleeping cattle and resting fields. The Nile plopped on in a lullaby, grand boats tied up for the night, rocking gently with its current._

_"What do you think of this war?"_

_He blinked his crimson-violet eyes in surprise."What do you mean?"_

_The woman turned to face him again, the shadow spreading to her straight nose, and along the seductive curve of her eye._

_"What do you think it will do to us... to Egypt?"_

_His gaze once again wandered to the slumbering city. The tall gates reared up darkly at the edge._

_"It will do what all wars do I suppose." He answered softly. "Men will die, women will mourn, children will hunger. But all for a short while, and the it will be over. Food and riches will be all the more bountiful, and people will move on with life."_

_He stopped and waited until his limited patience ran out._

_"Why do you ask this Kakra?"_

_She was beautiful, in a human, tangible way. "Because I wonder how life in all entirety can withstand the brutality of war."_

_He knew without a doubt what she was talking about then. _

The image churned abruptly in a mass of chaos, fading like grains in an hourglass, seeping through his mind's needy fingers. The phone was ringing again.

Seething, exhausted, and frustrated the spiky-haired pharaoh ripped the phone from its holder.

"WHAT?"

"...My pharaoh I have information containing Kakra..."

That was the only phrase that entered his mind. Sleep-deprivation and desperation had amounted to one bold move. Within that sentence, Yami had pulled on jacket and pants and darted quietly out the door, picking up the car keys as he went.

_I need some answers._

§

Ishtar opened the door's to Domino Museum for her special guest. It was the time too late to be night, and too early to be morning, so she had to deactivate the security alarms as well when she saw his car pull up.

"My Pharaoh, I am glad you could come on such short notice." The Egyptian woman greeted him in her usual calm mannerism.

However, the spirit had no time for propriety. He waved it away with his hand, dark circles under his bright, anxious eyes. "Thank you for searching. What have you found Ishizu?"

The blue-eyed oracle kept her gaze fixed on he man before her for a pause. "Please follow me to my office for a more... private conversation."

She nodded up to the video cameras for meaning.

Exasperated but understanding, the duelist followed.

"_What do you think it will say? You had another dream about Kakra." _Yugi's unbroken voice echoed into his glowering thoughts as he strode after the curator.

_"I don't know Yugi. I need to know some more about my past though." _Yami mentally replied.

_"Well, we do know some things, like your name and how the High Priest and Priestess are Kaiba and Ishizu. And the Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl were real people. And Karim is now Odeon... and even more about the thief Bakura. We have learned a lot since this first began."_

_"... I know, I just... when I can't remember my past it aches, almost. But your right, and without your help all that we already know wouldn't have been possible. Thank you Yugi."_

_"We've taken everything as a team, Yami... and though I doubt I'll ever call you Atem... We'll figure this out together too!" _The host proclaimed in his mind and made his parasite smile.

The door shut lightly and pharaoh took a seat across from subject.

The former priestess sensed her master's anxiety, and so she decided to keep him in suspense no longer.

"This is the manuscript I found with her name on it." The words brought a tan hand to withdraw the said item from her ivory dress and pass it carefully over to the blue-jacketed man across from her. He received it, and with caution, unrolled it once again, taking in the delicacy of hieroglyphics.

"That is her name." The bronze-skinned woman said, touching the indicated spot.

The inhabitant of the puzzle studied the small symbol done in auburn red ink. It was a bird of some kind, one wing outstretched while the other hung down. Sharp talons served as basics for the feet.

"A hawk of some kind?" He asked, looking back into cerulean eyes.

"A kestrel actually, standing for the name Kakra."

His strange eyes dropped back down, brow furrowing. "What does it say?"

The onyx-haired woman gazed deeply at him, taking in a breath before translating.

"We bury Kakra beside him, in hopes to undo the curse that was placed upon them. Shall their bodies lie together in death, perhaps their spirits will be able to seek out each other in the next life, even with the bindings. Such a tragedy to befall two such peoples as great as they. I know, as a scribe, that the name Kakra will fall into legend with time, and then into myth and truth will be diluted. But for now, for now all of Egypt should remember her name and her as she was. I will always remember Kakra, she will always be a part of me... The kestrel of our spirits, the one never to be chained, and was. The bird whose felling arrow... was love."

§

_6:00 pm in front of Noh Theater_

Kestrel realized what had happened first. After all, she was used to her adoptive daughter's antics.

"Talla!" Her voice rose with dangerous accusation as she eyed the brunette.

The younger was not one to give up so easily, even with the black shock of hair coming more into view. "What?"

The innocent look in her forest eyes was not enough to fool the CEO.

"Mikagi my ass, you are not honorable in anyway!" Oh the girl knew she was in trouble when her true last name was brought up.

The sun dress-wearing 12 year old darted quickly to the relative safety of her approaching friend.

§

"Mokuba, what is going on?" The elder demanded as he spotted familiar light tawny hair.

"Oh, come on Seto!" The younger Kaiba knew much better than to trick his brother.

He saw that his friend and her adoptive mother were already squaring off, and soon the girl slid swiftly toward them.

She ignored the taller of the two. "Any luck?"

The ebony-haired boy winced and darted his blue eyes back up to his brother, arms folded and an extremely annoyed expression on his face.

"Please big bro, just give it a shot!"

The elder Amun had finally walked over to the scene, determinedly avoiding her rival's eye.

"I am not amused Talla! You tricked me, and probably him too!" The medic reprimanded angrily.

Being who she was, the child didn't back down. " Of course I did! How were Mokuba and I ever going to have fun together with our siblings at war with each other? So we are all going to the theater together and see if you two can possibly act civil in public."

Her sister was relenting. "Talla..."

The spirited creature gripped the woman's hand. "Kess, please do it for me."

The 19 year old sighed. "You are horrible, you know that?"

The student had the world's biggest grin as she gave the slender figure an appreciative hug. "I know."

Now it was Mokuba's turn.

"Seto..." He asked, trying to be as dignified as possible while light eyes were begging him.

The duelist hated that look. It was a bad mask, unable to hide longing. He turned his head away, and as grouchily as possible, replied.

"Hm, if that is what you want I can put up with her for a while."

The long-haired boy smiled and that was all the thanks the man needed.

"Great, thank you bro!"

And so the four of them, two children leading them ahead. One walked with slight excitement, the other openly skipping, lead the two adults, keeping their distance, into the theater.

§

"That was great!" Talla exclaimed happily, dancing around on the carefully pruned garden surrounding Noh. The yellow sun dress flared around her knees as she spun her petite form.

"Did you like it big bro?" Mokuba asked with slight anxiety.

"It was fine." Seto curved his answer at those wide blue eyes.

Smiling at the acceptance, he joined his friend ahead, running about white lilies, deep lilacs, and red-edged roses.

Kestrel strode along beside him, a smile under her own blond bangs.

"They are so happy together." She noted, watching as her siblings started a water fight with the clay bird-bath.

She was trying, and the azure-eyed CEO decided he would try just as hard, for the sake of his brother, and for the sake of beating her.

"Hm, Talla is clever kid." His voice was still monotone of course, but the woman knew how to take a compliment.

She was light on her feet, Seto noticed, just like her younger sister, as her steps seemed to almost glide across the ground.

"Mokuba is great too." Amun obliged truthfully as the kids screeched and chased each other.

"Hm," The 2nd-ranking champion replied, as if to say _of course he is._

"I'm glad they are such good friends... I love seeing her smile." Kestrel kept the conversation in safe-zone with ease.

"She is always smiling." Kaiba observed, saying it with almost accusation.

But the good adoptive-mother allowed him to slide for her sister's sake.

"That is what is great about her. No matter how I am feeling, just seeing her makes me feel happy, because whenever she smiles I know I've done something right."

_That was extroverted. _The brown-haired man noted.

However it seemed that the euphoria of the children was infectious, as the amber-eyed teen gave a small laugh and dipped her hand in the nearby pond, splashing at the unsuspecting boy...

Mokuba let out a small gasp as cool wetness came from behind him. He swiveled around to see the attractive medic, eyes sparkling as she dipped her palm back in to pull out more water.

Getting the idea, the black-haired sibling dodged the spray, and splashed her with pond water.

Talla came over to aid her friend in the severe soaking of Kestrel.

"Hey!" The doctor laughed, her eyes shutting to block out the unrelenting spray.

Water splattered onto her maroon, off-the-shoulders sweater and black-washed jeans. Her arms had a strong, criss-crossing up as a sleeve, and black, small-heeled shoes. Her shoes were probably ruined, but it seemed like she couldn't care less.

The game company owner stood back a little ways, his face in a calm frown even as his thoughts whirled.

_What a child she is, no self-respect._

_Mokuba likes her._

_No he doesn't! He is just letting her join in because he is too nice to say otherwise._

_She is making your brother happy._

_And I don't?_

_Do you?_

The two major parts of Kaiba's soul was battling out. The big brother, who cares for nothing more than his family, and the refined CEO who hates any sign of human weakness, of softness and affection.

"Enough!" The eldest Amun managed to say between laughs and splashes.

Understanding that the game was over, Talla stopped and her friend soon followed.

"We won!" The brunette cheered, running over to help her guardian up.

"I'm soaking." The older girl said in mock anger.

"So I see." The planner winked, turning back to the smiling boy.

"I had fun Mokuba! See you at school tomorrow!"

"Yeah, this was a great idea Talla!" The CEO's brother replied, grinning as well.

"Thanks for coming Seto!" He added, turning to the said person.

The only dry person nodded simply, showing that he had not minded that much.

"See you soon, Mokuba." Kess said, shaking the auburn-flecked hair away from her face as it sopped wetly down her back.

"Oh, and Kaiba,"

Seto directed his piercing blue-eyed gaze at her.

"Next time maybe you'll join us."

_Didn't we loathe each other yesterday? What happened? Did the singing in the play give her a five-second memory?_

But the brown and black haired kids in front of him answered silently.

_"Whenever she smiles I know I've done something right."_

_"Maybe next time you'll join us."_

She was willing to start over, to like him, for the sake of her sister. Was he willing to do that for his brother?

_If I must._

§

A/N: Was anyone too ooc? I hope not, but leave me a note if they do become that way! Thanks to everyone who has reviewed!


	6. Message of the Millenium Eye

_Just hear me out  
If it's not perfect I'll perfect it till my heart explodes  
I highly doubt  
I can make it through another of your episodes  
Lashing out  
One of the petty moves you pull before you lose control  
You wear me out  
But it's all right now_

_- "Get Stoned" by Hinder_

§

A tainted-blond haired CEO was pacing the second story landing, and talking in a foreign dialect with the black cordless phone in her hands.

The house's two youngest occupants were currently spread out in the girl's bedroom, playing a card game the woman had never heard of.

"Si..."

Employees scurried around, friendly if busy faces. A group was now dedicated to fixing dinner for the Amun's and their guests.

"Ah, no, no helado por tu hermano. Soy leche..." Her jeans caught around her ankles and swayed as the slender legs took strides around the wood.

"And now my Gate Guardian attacks your Witch of the Black Forest. That's game!" The ecstatic voice came from behind a bush of black hair.

The smaller girl smiled as she asked, "So what did I do wrong this time?"

The co-owner of Kaiba Corp thought back through their game. "Nothing really, I'm just better at it right now then you. You're catching on really fast though!"

"Thanks," Talla winked at her friend, before standing up and stretching.

"So is your brother going to be having dinner with us?" She added, helping him up.

Mokuba's bright smile was a good enough answer. "Yeah, he agreed to eat here. I hope they get along as well as they did before."

The brunette shrugged. "Probably not as well, but they won't be that bad. Come on though, you haven't met Dante!"

"Dante?" The cerulean-eyed child repeated as the girl grabbed his hand and led him quickly through the manor.

Along the way, the preteen couldn't help but notice just how different his mansion was from this place. For instance, these floors were polished redwood, rosewood, and aged oak. The bedrooms were softly carpeted in plush. In fact, the only rooms with tile that he had seen was the actual kitchen and the bathroom. Even then, the tile was decorative and mosaic. In contrast, the Kaiba residents was nearly all clean-polished tile in slate-gray, navy-blue, ivory cream, or starch black. Only the two bedrooms were carpeted at all and wood, well that was hardly anywhere. And then there was the decor. His home was filled with high-tech engineering, gadgets, and vibrant lights. Everything was neat and orderly, and it was filled wit the buzz of electronics. The furniture was simple and modern, usually with some form of twisting titanium. However, the home he was in now flourished with color and art. Paintings of woodlands, beaches, people, and even a few abstract. The walls themselves were finely painted, and little things like banisters or the chair he had sat at were well-crafted and carved with some design. Each room seemed to have a different personality, but somehow they all worked together. Whereas home was aligned, and fit together like a puzzle rather than a person.

"Dante!" The adoptive daughter's shout brought the orphaned brother back down from his thoughts.

Bounding up to them was Dante, a 90 pound dog.

Oh, and yeah, Kaiba Manor did not have any pets.

The animal leaped into its mistress's waiting hands, growling happily as it pounced. Laughing from her position on the floor, the youngest Amun introduced canine to anthropoid.

"This is Dante, named after Kess's favorite poet. We adopted him from the pound just like she adopted me." Her long brown strands ran into the pet's fur.

While the guest was quite sure if his brother ever did get a pet, it would be a pure-bred, he also had a more pressing thought. Dante did not look like a dog. From his sleek white coat sprinkled sparsely with black around the paws and tail to sharp yellow eyes and the growl he had greeted his caller with, Dante seemed **wolf**.

"Er... what exactly is Dante?" The student asked slowly. _Somehow I can see her adopting a wild animal._

A slightly nervous laugh came from Talla's lips.

"Well he's half Akbash and er... half gray wolf. But he's totally friendly."

Mokuba gave his friend an incredulous look. "You're crazy, you know that?"

"Well if I wasn't I'd be boring." The owner replied with another wink.

_I hope Seto does not meet Dante._

§

The person in question was currently drifting over his laptop in his black limousine. He tried his best to focus only on the new holographic design he was making a digital blueprint of, but as the gates of Amun Manor pulled into view, he found his thoughts irritably wavering.

_"Seto,"_

_Blue eyed faced him in silence,showing the boy that his brother was listening._

_"Talla invited me over." He was shifting on his feet, but forced his face into a decent calm._

_The CEO waited in silence for his brother to continue. _

_"And... she invited both of us to dinner."_

_The teen scowled, and shuffled his papers._

_"Will you Seto?" Those wide, pleasing eyes should be banned._

_"Sure." The brunette grunted as his sibling hugged his mid-section before running off to the car._

His logical mind was ticking off the scenario. Amun was in her zone. She was surrounded by people who listened to her, and she had his younger brother under her keep. Kaiba hated anyone holding cards on him. And she had too many. But for Mokuba, he would do it.

"Mr. Kaiba, we have arrived." The chauffeur called as he slowed to a stop by the door.

"Park in the garage and wait." The game-company owner commanded before opening his door and striding up towards the building.

_Kaiba Manor is bigger._

§

The trench-coat wearing man was led into the main room of the house and met by a strange, black-suited man.

"And who are you sir?" He had a faint accent on his vowels, maybe Spanish?

The infamous CEO frowned at this man's ignorance. "I am Seto Kaiba. Amun called me here for dinner."

The balding man's dark eyes suddenly seemed to light with a sense of cruel comprehension.

"Ah, and you graciously accepted I assume?"

_What is he playing at?_The 2nd-best duelist thought with savage annoyance. "Whatever, where is she?"

With a look of almost disdain the older man sniffed. "**Ms**. Amun does not entertain stupid bastards."

"Who the hell are you talking to?" Kaiba was shaking with fury as he approached the other male with his foot or so of height advantage.

"I was to believe your name was Kaiba." The black-eyed man did not seem afraid, but burning with anger as well.

_Ignorant punk! _He seethed with his best who-the-fuck-do-you-think-you-are look.

"Get out of my way or I'll strip you down so you'll have to go back to your shanty!"

The man cursed in Spanish or Mexican, the brunette couldn't tell.

"Foul-mouthed rich boy, go to hell!"

"Idiot, go drink from your dog bowl." That was usually a comment he reserved for Wheeler, but this upstart employee was on the street-punk's level.

Before the Latino could retort, a sharp, clear-ringing voice interrupted them from the stairs.

"Montague, I asked you to show our guest into the dining room." Kestrel glided down the steps. A black jacket was put over a white tank-top and jeans rode her legs, yet the doctor could not have seemed more commanding then with a suit on. Her voice was not the one she had used with him, but it was firm and even her aura suddenly held a kind of power.

"You said guest, Ms. Amun, not stray animal." The one called Montague said vehemently.

"Watch your mouth, import." Seto snapped before the woman could intervene.

"Kaiba please refrain from insulting my employees. Montague, you are not to approve my visitors. Please tend to Mrs. Karita. She is refusing to leave my office and your Spanish is better than mine.

Grudgingly the employee walked off, muttering under his breath.

"Your employee insulted me, perhaps you should teach your pets better manners." The blue-eyed CEO started cruelly.

"I have only one pet in this house, Kaiba." The eldest Amun replied in a soft anger. "And my employees have free enterprise to their own opinions of you."

"Don't think just because I agreed to come here means I will tolerate all of your many levels of apathy, Amun." He replied with another glare.

She retorted with one of her own. "It didn't even pass my mind Kaiba. Just keep in your thoughts that I shall only tolerate a little of your sickening behavior."

"I'll keep that in mind." His tone rolled with heavy disdain, as though she was an ant.

It was going to be a long night.

§

Sophie Cordeua was sitting calmly in her well-polished office. It was one of the few rooms that she might like more than her laboratory. Her shining Nobel Prize gleamed from its high shelf. The vinyl floor clicked when she walked over it in lab boots. The mahogany desk sported several smiling pictures of herself with various men. Waning sunlight slid through her window, making the furniture gleam bronze. The walls were pasted with her accomplishments. A REM chart scale, a brain model, the scientific theory, an image from an inkblot test all resided on their pale yellow surface. The faint strum of Mozart chimed in the background, relaxing the scientist. Even that stupid magazine, Tokyo Pop, was in this office, only because she had been third bachelorette at 32. Other residents of the desk were papers on her latest work, brain scans, and several fine-crafted fountain pens.

This was a woman who loved to live large.

However with her observant pepper-colored eyes she spotted something that had not been their before. On her prized end-table of melded iron legs and polished wood surface was a three-headed LED lamp. But beside the lamp was a small parcel, wrapped in beige, that had not been there before.

Sophie's natural curiosity made her pull out of her relaxed poise and walk over to the package. There was no name, no address, no writing of any kind of the dirty cream surface except for four words.

_from your secret admirer_

Sophie was also very vain. With excitement building up in her chest the scientist ripped off the tape and pulled at the wrapping.

Two items fell to the desk. The first was a thick wad of money. The high increment bills were bound in a firm paper wrap. It must be several thousand dollars.

The second item was an envelope, written with the same loopy handwriting as on the parcel.

_Sophie Cordeua_

Her fingers shaking slightly, and fear rapidly replacing the excitement, the woman slid open the innocent white envelope and drew out the letter that it held.

_Sophie,_

_It has been a long while since we have had contact but I know you have kept well. In fact, as I write this to you I have been informed that you just finished having some fun with that Russian chemist. But your love-life does not concern me. However, you do owe me a debt, dear Sophie, and I am here to call upon it now. The blueprints I sent you a year and a half ago, I trust you remember them. I asked that in 2 years time you would have created for me a device to implicate healthy, unwilling bodies into it without attaching them to the computer itself. A kind of dream-prison, as you recall. Your time is almost up Sophie, and I will come to collect my prize in six months time. _

_Until then,_

It was signed by a strange eye, golden in color and Egyptian in form. The Millennium Eye.

§

"I suppose you don't have a taste for fine cuisine then." Kaiba baited as his cold eyes swept over the spread of jasmine rice, seared salmon with wasabi, and pita with oil spread out along the four person table. Talla and Mokuba immediately chose seats together on the left side of the table, leaving the tensions high among their family, forced side by side.

"I don't need to flaunt food to remind myself that I have money."

A waist-coat wearing girl with strawberry colored hair came out.

"Drinks?"

"Chai Tea, please" The younger Amun ordered smooth

"Pocari Sweat," Her friend said without bothering to think about it.

"Calpis," The older Kaiba said with a cold look at the girl.

"Just some Sangria Tea, Cheza, thanks." The matriarch of the house asked with a smile.

The red-head seemed relived at her employer's pleasantries after the mood of her guest.

"They are just employees." Her business partner noted with obvious superiority.

"Yet we are all just people, if you care to remember." Kestrel replied in a low tone.

The bickering CEO's kept their voices from the happy chatter of their siblings. That was silently agreed. I don't like you, you don't like me. But for the sake of the kids, we'll pretend for a while.

"What is that supposed to mean?" The brunette hissed between his teeth as he placed a precise amount of wasabi onto his plate.

Scooping up a pita and drizzling on oil lightly, the amber-eyed woman explained. "You have a god-factor, Kaiba. You can't stand to treat others properly because you have yourself so worked up that they are less then you."

The duelist's chopstick jabbed especially hard at the salmon. "You know nothing about me." His whisper was deadly.

She cast a glance at him from the corner of her eye. "I know as much about you as you seem to know about everyone else."

"Who died and made you judge?" The gamer was now seething in between his food.

Kess was quick. "I'm just taking the place that you usually reside."

He made a haughty noise. "So you judge me in order to tell me not to judge?"

"People as big-headed as you usually need someone to get to their level."

Their banter continued on through the meal, the happy children oblivious to the low spoken threats and whispered insults.

"So why the hell were you so damn cheery last week and now you are back to being a wench?"

_I hate that word!_ She fumed. "Last week I thought there might be a shred of decency in you. But seeing you talk to Montague shot all those ideas out the window!."

Somehow, they made it through the meal without raised voices or violent assaults.

"Hey, we should have dinner once a week all together!" Talla suddenly called out to the entire room.

A terse silence followed.

"We can take turn at the houses! It would be fun, and teach you two not to jump at each other's throats." The green-eyed girl added as she saw the two adults straining to retain the silence.

"Om... sure Talla."

"Hm,"

_Medic Goes Murderous, I can already see the headline._

_Amun and Wheeler would be a good couple of mutts. _

Ignorance is so sweet.

§

A/N: Okay, the story is going to start to speed up a little after this. The beginning chapters were for character, and now were really getting into plot!


	7. Unholy Memories Bathed in Shadow

_I walk the streets of Japan till I get lost  
Cause it doesn't remind me of anything  
With a graveyard tan carrying a cross  
Cause it doesn't remind me of anything  
I like studying faces in a parking lot  
Cause it doesn't remind me of anything  
I like driving backwards in the fog  
Cause it doesn't remind me of anything _

The things that I've loved the things that I've lost  
The things I've held sacred that I've dropped  
I won't lie no more you can bet  
I don't want to learn what I'll need to forget

I like gypsy moths and radio talk  
Cause it doesn't remind me of anything  
I like gospel music and canned applause  
Cause it doesn't remind me of anything  
I like colorful clothing in the sun  
Cause it doesn't remind me of anything  
I ilke hammering nails and speaking in tongues  
Cause it doesn't remind me of anything

The things that I've loved the things that I've lost  
The things I've held sacred that I've dropped  
I won't lie no more you can bet  
I don't want to learn what I'll need

_-"Doesn't Remind Me" performed by Audioslave  
_§

_"Kakra, please I know you are my friend but with my coronation I do have to look a bit more... official in front of people." _

_She just laughed, her hair turning gold as it shook in the sunlight. With her usual bright smile, she bowed._

_"Forgive me, my Pharaoh, almighty reincarnation of Osiris, god among men..." She spoke with flourish._

_"Stop it!" He tried to be stern, but her charming antics caused him to chuckle as well._

_"See, you can still laugh, though if you wish me to call you Pharaoh rather than Atem I shall. Though if no one ever calls you by your name you may just forget it." Her skin was a glorious tan from the high sun. _

_"Don't be silly, I'll always remember my name!" He wrinkled his nose in insult._

_"Alright then Pharaoh." _

_It was the two of them, riding through the dunes during one of their few moments of peace. The tri-color haired man rode on a slate gray stallion, tall and powerful. The creature's noble head perched with dark, swift eyes and a white mane. His friend rose on a dark, deep horse the color of dried blood. She was one of the few woman who could ride a stallion such as this creature, bred for speed and strength. _

_The golden eye of Ra was slitting shut against the horizon, expanding to touch the sky in last fingers of its golden rays. Rouge pink, tinkering bronzes, and amethyst purples sheeted the atmosphere. The white gold of the sand sparkled like a sea of diamonds. Against the backdrop, the sand-stone gates of the city cast a wide shadow, reminding him of his duty in its darkness against this beauty._

_Kakra had stopped riding, and was sitting on her horse, eyes closed and hands outstretched as though she was basking in this scene. In fact, she seemed a part of it. Her tawny hair and sun-touched skin could simply fall into that glowing orb, her dark violet shift melding into the colors of the sky, soothed by nature._

_The horse beat its hoof against the sand in a show of almost impatience._

_Was everything trying to tear him away from this moment?_

_"Kakra, we have to go back." He regretted the sound of his own deep voice._

_She opened her bright amber eyes, glinting with the light, letting her hands fall back to the rich brown mane of her stallion._

_"What do you think it would be like to fly?" She asked, her voice more toned down now that she had relaxed._

_He turned to focus on her, the cardinal cloak flying against his bare shoulders. _

_"What, riding isn't good enough for the almighty Kakra now?" He teased a little._

_The slender figure winced at having her words thrown back. "No... can you imagine what it would be like to just stretch your wings out and fly... to be able to go anywhere."_

_The king caught her bittersweet smile and a frown wrinkled his smooth forehead._

_"Birds must get lonely though." He replied softly._

_She just cast him a look with her glowing eyes. "Not if someone flies away with them."_

_The bronze-skinned man trotted his horse towards her. "Birds are birds, Kakra. People must stay and live as fate dictates. For me, I live to rule Egypt and its people. What is your path?_

_He had been wanting to ask his friend this question for a long time. Ever since she had left the priesthood in fact, at 12. _

_"Maybe I am a bird Atem," She spoke his voice with a strange passion this time, and he was sure it was the last time he would ever hear her say it._

_"Duty binds us all my friend. You are a caged bird." _

_Her horse swiveled around, sending her long locks streaming._

_"Then I will have to break my cage."_

_§_

He didn't wake up in a sweat this time, or even because of the horrible phone or any other noise. The memory faded out as the wavelets upon a beach, gently and teasing. And when Yugi Motou opened his eyes he immediately looked to the left, where a transparent form was sitting beside him, head on his hands.

"Well, you were having fun there." The host tried to ease that... what was it now? He felt humiliation, something rare for his partner.

Yami nodded slowly, but an odd frown was on his face, almost as if it was trying to turn itself into a smile.

"Kakra seemed really nice, and happy too." The boy sat up fully, worry filled with deep orchid eyes with the behavior of his other.

Another nod, and still that dumb look.

"Yami your scaring me, what's wrong?" All pretense flew out the window.

The Pharaoh looked at him finally, and a strong surge of pain clashed into Yugi's soul from their bond. It reflected in his scarlet orbs

"I told her to stop saying my name because I could never forget it."

The irony sunk into the boy finally, who pushed sympathy into their link, trying to ease the man's pain.

"You...you didn't know back then. It's not your fault." The duelist spoke gently, wrapping warm hands around the Millennium Puzzle.

The elder didn't reply, but the teen knew he was still blaming himself. When Yami felt guilty about something...

"We found out your name in the end though."

"Too many people died first."

"Stop blaming yourself."

"My entire court... Tristan was possessed! What if something had happened to Joey or Tea? What if something had happened... to you?" The spirit's voice softened from the yell it had gaged up to as he completed his sentence.

Motou looked back up, his link radiating compassion and care.

"We've been through a lot together Yami. And without you I wouldn't have gotten this far. We're partners, and that's it."

Memories flooded between the two minds. Flashes of Duelist Kingdom and their strategy against Pegasus, the shadow duel between Malik during Battle City, the rare-hunter who captured the puzzle and the duel that commenced, Yugi's duel against Joey, Yami finding a god card, Yugi offering his soul instead of Yami's when they hunted Dartz, when Kaiba threatened suicide if he lost the duel to Yugi again, when they first defeated their rival together... Scenes and images clashed and when they swept back to the recess of their minds, the Pharaoh was smiling a little.

"Thank you Yugi."

The boy winked. "No problem... hey I wonder something though..."

"What is it?" The spirit asked seriously.

"Do you think Kakra has a reincarnation?"

§

"So what is with the coat?"

It happened as habitually as the Sunday night dinners. Four of them had already happened, and it now fell without thinking. Somehow, the two rival CEOs managed to not kill each other. Instead they settled for under-breath taunts and verbal abuse. The rules to this game were silent but set. Two people as clever as Kestrel and Seto did not need everything spelled out for them, and so they never needed to discuss the boundaries. And the laws of the dinner were few.

Do not drag business into the discussion. (Kaiba had delivered a fine product to her last week, and she had paid)

Continue to dine as though nothing is going on.

And the most important establishment:

NEVER let the children hear you.

So tonight was the famous meal of the weak, with Talla and Mokuba chatting on about school and duel strategies. And this time, it was the woman who began the arguments.

His blue eyes lowered to the white trench coat and a smirk worked its way onto his lips.

"And what is wrong with the coat exactly?"

She put down the green tea she had been sipping at, smiling challengingly and amber eyes sparkling.

"You have worn it to every dinner. So are you attached to it or just possessed with no sense of wardrobe out of your many skills?"

"Hm, I have better things to do with my time then prune myself." The duelist retorted, sending a message with his roving gaze over her teal blouse with golden stripes and khaki Capri.

She have him a roguish wink. "Although you may be unaware of society from your reclusive behavior... the majority of the population does change their clothes everyday, and shower I might add."

"You know for a bad-smelling, unfashionable person I still attract more attention then you." His words came in between mouths of sushi.

Amun laughed and rolled her eyes. "Whatever you say."

A frown appeared on Kaiba's face as he arched an eyebrow. "What does that mean?"

The blond scooted from the table momentarily to nod to an employee, before flashing him another devilish grin.

"A man as skinny as you can hardly call upon that much attention."

The duelist's frown returned to a defiant smirk. He seemed bound to that faint upturn on the lips.

"Hm, what you think you're in better shape then me?"

"Oh, I know that. I am a medical physician after all."

"Your foolish yourself."

"Prove me wrong then." Those were Kestrel Amun's favorite words.

Now Seto Kaiba was not a man interested in relationships, women, or even sex. He was a determined business owner brought up to be cold, and had resistance to the slightest amount of... well, romance. However he was an excruciatingly competitive person with an intensity that drove him to often strange brinks. And it was that part of his soul, the part which refused to loose at anything, that made Tokyo's number one bad ass do what happened next.

He pulled the white jacket from his frame and rolled up the sleeve of one lean, well-toned arm.

The medic eyed it with a surprised, if egging on look. She liked to push him because he would go farther than anyone she had ever met. Even past his cool guy facade, that burning intensity would get to him.

_What will you do if I..._ "An arm shows nothing." Her voice was filled with false disdain.

Giving a low growl of annoyance, the frigid blue eyes noticed that all scurrying employees had left the room. An inner battle had broken out, and was sketched in the tightly-drawn lines of his handsome face.

_This is shit, drop it._

_I won't give in to her!_

_There is no point._

_I will beat that damn smile off her face!_

_You'll just make a fool of yourself._

_I'll make a fool of her!_

The snarky comment Kess had readied upon her tongue fell dead as the fine-linen of the black turtleneck peeled back, revealing a chest built with lean, hard muscle.

_Did he just... _The woman could only stare in shock.

_He did just..._

_He is hot._ Amun immediately stamped out the last thought and suddenly found her voice.

Unfortunately, Talla found hers moments before, and had no problem voicing it.

"What the hell are you two doing?"

Mokuba and his friend eyed the two teens with wide, puzzled expressions.

Thankful for the chocolate bangs that hid his eyes the businessman immediately dropped his shirt and gave a menacing snarl.

"Nothing." Ah, his famous get-the-fuck-out-of-my-face charm.

Somehow the woman managed not to blush but just to simply say,

"Arguing."

However when the two children had returned to their conversation, the man muttered out of his mouth,

"I win."

She didn't disagree this time.

§

"What is with you?" The younger Amun demanded as she watched the Kaiba brothers drive away.

"Nothing," Her voice replied smoothly, but the disturbed swirling of he amber orbs betrayed them.

The brunette placed her hands on her hips and tapped her left foot into the wood. "Yeah, that's convincing."

Her adoptive mother blinked once and gave a small smile.

"I am fine Talla."

She would have none of it. "Was it Mokuba's brother? You two were... odd this evening."

The elder gave a slightly strangled laugh. "It was just a little argument. Don't worry about it."

"Kess..." The preteen sighed, then resigned herself to a hug and exiting the room.

Shaking her had again, the blond forced her legs to move. Her mind was beginning to ride with memories. Her gliding steps went up the stairs ad turned left toward her office. Opening the silver laptop, the businesswoman tried to focus on the soft pastel glow of the computer screen. The starch contrast of white on black reflected the text, but even as words were read her mind was not excepting them.

Images, scenes long buried found their way back into her thoughts. The screen blurred and the office spun out as the lone figure began to fall back into the darkest corners of her mind. On the outside, her long-fingered hand clenched tightly into fists and her bright eyes squinted themselves shut sharply. On the inside, her mind was struggling to regain control of the scenes not free and wreaking havoc on her mind.

A man, dim light, warm sheets, fear soaking the room.

_No._

Hands crawling, muscles straining, hearts beating with hatred and horror.

_I will not think about this._

Hot breath tickling her neck, bruises adorning her skin, blood dripping from out of her mouth and messily down her chin.

_Not now!_

She was clutching her head now. Fingernails pulled at the roots of the sheet-like hair and racked the scalp.

_Not ever again!_

.The ringing in her ears subsided, and the wash-up of old feelings lay back down to their forgotten bed. Taking one last glance at the computers screen and giving up, the CEO paced from her office to the front door, stopping once to inform a man to tell Montague and Talla she as out for a walk, if they asked.

The cool, smog air of Domino City hit her full blast, and the walker embraced it fully. Kestrel breathed deeply and counted again in her head.

_1.2.3.4..5..6...7...8...9...10_

Her heart rate slowed once again to normal. Treading lightly down the black road, not paying attention to where she was going. Now Amun was free to mentally berate herself.

_He showed me his chest to prove that he was better-looking than me, and I freak out?_

_So what if he is... it doesn't matter! That was pathetic._

_One tiny thing, and the memories surge back up. Is that all it takes? Am I really that weak?_

_I can't afford to loose myself again._

_§_

Atem drove slowly down the roads. His hands on the wheel, foot on the pedal. Yet the Pharaoh's mind kept wandering from the road.

"_Something is going to happen soon. Can you feel it Yugi?"_

_"It is almost like... all the peace that has been was leading up to whatever is coming next." _

_"I agree, and I am worried. What do you think will happen?"_

_"Whatever it is, we'll take care of it. We always do Yami."_

_"...I hope you are right."_

Shiny, silver-plated skyscrapers lined against little shops beaming with neon colors. People sped across in flashes, leading separate lives. Dusk had fallen and night was reaching up slowly, darkening the azure of the sky, hiding the sun and sprinkling one or two stars seen under the thick gases. A waning moon leaned casually along its bed of night. Yet the city of Domino seemed to wake at night rather then sleep. The colorful signs flashed on, the teens escaped their daily lives to hang around. The spirit made a strong right-handed turn away from the downtown strip mall.

_I have to talk to Ishizu. She wanted to know of any other dreams anyways._

The alter-ego had received an answering machine when he had tried to call the oracle. However, he doubted she would mind a surprise visit from him again.

However, Yami was to captured in his thoughts to notice a sudden figure walking into his path.

§

The CEO had not put any thought in direction or time. But now that she was calmer, clearer she realized how stupid that was.

_I could have walked right into a tree, or right through a... road._

The self-incriminating smile toying on he features faded as the sister realized that she had indeed, walked straight into the middle of a street. However before she could compute any more the flash of headlights filled her amber-eyed vision.

§

When sunset-painted eyes first spotted the being before him, he immediately assumed it was a form of hallucination.

_What the..._His blaring white lights spotted a head of tawny hair, a slender form, and a pair of startling bright eyes.

"_Do you think Kakra has a reincarnation?"_

_Yup, and you're just about to hit her with a car. _A logical, sarcastic-sounding voice whispered into his ear as the 5,000 year old duelist moved his foot over to slam on the brakes.

The poor car slid to an uneasy halt, lurching at the suddenness.

The man gave no thought to that as he opened his door and leaped out of the machine.

_Is it really her? _"Kakra?"

A woman was pulling herself up from the gravel, unharmed but dirty as she fixated her glowing orbs upon him.

"Who?"

But the features were undeniable. This woman, whoever she was, indeed was the reincarnation of the one with a kestrel signed name.

§


	8. The Past: Disbelief, Pain, and Unpoken

_If I gave you the truth would it keep you alive?_

_Though I'm closer to wrong_

_I'm no further from right_

_And now I'm convinced on the inside that something's wrong with me_

_Convinced on the inside, you're so much more than me, yeah_

_No there's nothing you can say that can salvage the lie_

_But I'm trying to keep my intentions disguised_

_And now I'm deprived of my conscience and something's got to give_

_Deprived of my conscience_

_This all belongs to me, yeah_

_-'Truth' by Seether_

§

Ishizu Ishtar studied the woman before her. Her amber eyes were confused, guarded, and slightly apprehensive. A stone tablet was on the cluttered desk between three people. A woman was carved there. From the sharp, smooth bone structure of the face to the notation of 'sand-colored' eyes beside the carved image, it was obviously her. Oh, and then there was the name.

Kestrel Amun...

Kakra of the kestrel-signed name,

And the icing on the cake...

Amun: Egyptian word for sun, or day

But though the two Egyptians in the room knew that this corporate worker was a reincarnation to a mysterious woman fro 5,000 years ago trying to convince her was a totally different thing.

"So... that is supposed to be me." The medic's voice was slightly strained as she pointed at the stone.

It could not have been clearer that the CEO thought both the man who had almost hit her with a car and the curator he had brought her to after babbling about past-lives, Egypt, and that game Duel Monsters, were completely crazed.

_At least she is polite about it. _Ishizu noted to herself in slight exasperation. _I remember Kaiba was much more... vocal about his disbelief._

"Yes, that is an image of you from a wall-carving dated back to 5,000 years ago." The oracle answered calmly.

Yami was watching the girl of his dreams, fidgeting with his feet. He knew she didn't believe them, and his poor driving probably contributed to that. Hell, if someone almost hit him with a car, then started calling him by some other name, begged him to drive to some museum and tell him he was the reincarnation of some random man from 5,000 years ago, he would not believe it. In fact, he wouldn't have even gotten in the car in the first place, but slowly backed away from the deranged person...

"So I was alive a long time ago, and don't remember it." Kestrel's tone was slow, steady, and uncertain.

"You are a reincarnation of someone named Kakra who lived in Egypt." Atem answered this time.

Her face was expressionless, but the eyes told the whole story. The blond gave a small little laugh.

"Right... and what did I do in... Egypt?"

The Pharaoh and his loyal subject exchanged a glance. "We are not sure. The dreams only give us glimpses of your character and situations. The hieroglyphics only tell of your... tragic death."

"Oh... well do either of you have... past lives?" The elder sister seemed to be testing how far gone the people were.

"I was a High Priestess." The blue-eyed woman assisted.

"I was a Pharaoh." The crimson-eyed man said hesitantly.

"Is this a joke?" Amun finally demanded, loosing all pretense. Who knew? Maybe this was some television show or fad thing. Almost hit someone with a car, and try to feed them bullshit. It certainly sounded like MTV...

The former priestess looked at her with intense cerulean eyes.

"No, Amun. This is no joke."

When the duelist didn't deny it either, she finally decided.

_Yup, they're totally psycho._

"This is all very nice—" The disbeliever began in a slow, soothing voice as though to calm a wild animal.

"—but I really have to go. Have a nice evening."

Yami stood to stop her, but the former Isis shook her head.

"Let her go my Pharaoh. It is hard for people to accept this kind of thing."

The spirit's sensual eyes followed her slender form hastily, gracefully, though the double doors of Domino Museum. She had already called for a car to pick her up.

He frowned, lining his forehead under the spiked hair.

_Who is she?_

§

Kaiba was irritated... no, enraged more like it. And he didn't even know why. Actually, he was quite sure the subject of his fury, but as to the reason...

A bright, teasingly playful smile appeared in his vision, obscuring the steadily growing red and blue stock chart.

"Damn her!" The bachelor seethed softly to the silent walls.

He sat back in his black chair, trying to clear his thoughts as the persistent question kept reappearing in his thoughts.

Why?

_Why does Amun get under my skin like that?_

_Why can't I stand to loose to her?_

_Why the hell did I do that?_

The usually self-restraining teen loathed loosing, but he always managed it with cold disdain and sharp dignity. In fact, there was only one person in the world he had found that could make the CEO loose his crisp, calculating attitude and drop to drastic intensity of a feral dog.

_Yugi Muto_

The spiky-haired brat managed to drive him up a wall, between the annoying cheerleaders that always seemed to be growing to the blabber about 'heart of the cards' to the simple fact that Yugi could beat him. But that was Yugi, his rival. Seto understood his enthralling intensity when he faced the dueling prodigy.

But he had no real reason to react this way around Amun.

_What is it about her? _For someone so logically smart, it was true to say that the reclusive man knew next to nothing on social skills and relationships. He had always repressed his own emotions, and therefore didn't understand them.

But something about that blond-haired woman... just got to him. He could not stand to loose to her.

_On anything..._

She didn't even duel(Thank the gods for that one, if she could actually play the game decently he would probably drive himself insane) and his company was wealthier. He didn't have anything to be jealous of so why...

_I stripped, damn it! _The elder Kaiba mentally berated himself.

_And what was that look on her face?_ When he had revealed his chest to her in an act of what he decided was temporary impairment, that stupid smile had fallen off her face and...

Her face burnt into his mind. The sudden flash in her amber eyes, the small opening of her lips and the fine line drawn in by her brow.

_What was she thinking?_

What had glimmered for a second in those bright orbs? Shock, surprise, nostalgia... fear?

_Why the hell do I care? _The duelist mentally screamed to himself. Yes that was the source of his problems. Why did he care so much about loosing a simple word game with her that meant nothing? Why did he care that even for a moment, her smile had faded away and something buried rose up in her eyes? Why did he care that he was the one who caused it?

_Wait... I don't care that I caused that look. _The blue-eyed man thought suddenly after the last mental question. He realized his tall frame was standing and promptly sat back down in the chair, determined to get his work down.

_I don't care._

§

The phone rang at 2 am in Mokuba's room. He struggled out of bed, wiping at his sleep-laden eyes, already knowing who would be on the other line. Only one person had the guts to call a Kaiba at obscure times at night, and probably had the right to do it.

"Talla, do you sleep?" His voice was muffled and barely contained a yawn.

"All the time in Mr. Honduras's class." Of course, she could be snarky as ever even in these late hours.

"Hm, you do realize that I like to sleep, you know... at night." The black-haired boy teased back a little now that he was more awake.

"You'll get to sleep another night I needed to talk." The brunette directed from the other side of the line.

"Not if you call me again, I won't."

"Mokuba, please, I'm being serious." It was the girl's tone rather than her words that made the student focus seriously on the strange conversation taking place.

"All right, I'm listening."

There was a small pause on the speaker. That really got the blue-eyed boy's attention. When his friend hesitated it meant that something important(and usually ill) was going on.

" I need to cancel our dinner this week." She began.

The co-owner blinked. "What! Why?"

The younger Amun's normally carefree and light voice carried something heavy and disappointed in it.

She was hesitating again. "Do you remember the dinner yesterday?"

"Yeah sure, everything was fine."His voice was a bit higher with a mingle of betrayal and confusion.

"...When your brother took off his shirt—"

"They were having some competition or something, that's all." Mokuba interrupted her, though he had been startled by the scene as well.

"Stop it!" Talla suddenly cut in through the line, exhausted by sorrow and worry.

The boy's anger was dissipating, quickly giving room for worry. _What is going on?_

With a breath, the green-eyed girl continued talking. "I'm not trying to blame your brother for anything, Mokuba. It's just Kess..."

The adopted daughter was searching for the words to find. She was really starting to scare her friend. This was way out of her character.

"She came home half an hour ago."

The younger Kaiba chimed in cautiously. "Where was she?"

"Out for a walk."

The silence that came next broke the kid's patience.

"Talla what is going on, just say it, please."

A small sound came through the other line. _Is she... crying?_

"Kess is the best thing that ever happened to me. My parents... they fucking were assholes."

He waited quietly, listening to his friend, smiling a little at her acclimation to dirty words. However he was very sure she was softly crying.

"Too young, too stupid, and too bitter to be good parents. My life was a wreck..."

"Did they... hurt you?"

Another sob that somehow sew itself into a laugh. "Not even Kess could remove all the scars from them."

"..."

"But, I'm okay now because one day she found me." Another one of those weird laugh-sobs. "And being a doctor she took me in and patched me up. I asked her to drive me back to my house. A week later she found me again in the park. At that point Kess knew exactly what was going on with my parents. So she told me that she had enough money to take me in... Being one of the most well-known surgeons she was still pretty rich. Of course I agreed, but when she drove me home and asked my parents if she could adopt me they refused..."

The sobs had quieted as anger was able to resurface.

"Apparently they were afraid of loosing their punching bag. But Kess... she offered them money. She... bought me."

Mokuba held his tongue, not sure where this tangent on history was leading to. But somehow he knew it was important.

"And so I lived with her for a year and well, she was great of course. But then..."

The words were choking in her throat again.

"Mokuba you are my best friend in the world, but I can't... it's to dangerous and she didn't even want me to know..."

"Talla, what is it!" Fear and worry had made him scream.

"... There is something in Kestrel's past. I don't even know all of it, but... she's hurt. She's hurt like your brother is, that is why I know him and I know you. I don't know what happened to you both..."

The orphan bit his tongue and clutched the necklace he wore even in sleep.

"...and I won't ask. But you see Kess can live with it just like your brother does. They both live with their pain and they are strong because of it. And we adore them because of it."

"I know," The other voice was a whisper.

A soft cry fell from her lips again and the boy wished he knew anything about comforting people. Seto had always been the one to protect him, to soothe him.

"But Mokuba I love her. And when she left on that walk tonight... she was hurting again. It wasn't you or your brother or anything but I saw it. And I just need some time with her... to make sure that everything is okay. You understand?"

There was a long breath on the phone. The clock told him that fifteen minutes had passed. A decision was slowly forming in the Kaiba's young, clever, mind.

"Our parents died when we were young." Well it might as well be Jerry-Springer time for them both. He doubted he'd ever say this without sleep-deprivation anyways.

"I never really found out the cause, and I never asked. But Seto and I went to an orphanage. I cried back then because I was scared and lonely. But I always... I always had my brother and that made things okay."

Talla had stopped crying and wasn't making a sound, but he knew his friend was listening.

"He kept the bullies away, made sure I was safe, and played with me. We were fine on our own. And then he came, Gozaboro Kaiba."

"Your last name is...adoptive." The brunette finally input, her voice soft and light.

"Yeah, he was a rich business tycoon and the chess champion of Japan. But when he came... Seto walked right up and demanded a game from him. If he won Seto said he had to adopt himself and me. Of course, my brother always wins. So we were adopted. But... Gozaboro wanted an heir, not a kid. He refused to let Seto play and worked him hard in everything you could imagine. I was left alone, being too young. I don't know everything he made my brother do, but I know it was bad."

The blue-eyed boy swallowed hard.

"But Seto doesn't settle for second-best. So he worked and worked until he finally took control of the company. At 12 he became CEO of Kaiba Corp and life got better then."

"And your adoptive father?"

The 13 year old snorted. "He died of a heart attack soon after that. But he managed to make Seto a lot of what he is now. My brother may seem cold on the outside but I know that he loves me, and that he really is a good person. He changed Kaiba Corp into a gaming company and became one of the world's greatest duelists. No matter what happens I can always depend on my brother, but your right sometimes I do know he hurts." His volume had lowered now.

"But doesn't everyone?"

The forest-eyed child kept quiet for a few more moments.

"Hey Mokuba,"

"Yeah?"

"What was Kaiba Corp before it was a gaming company?"

"A weapons factory."

Talla gave a small giggle he was glad to hear.

"What is so funny?"

"Kess... she **hates**the military."

§

Artificial light glittered the silver of electronics and heightened the shadows of the underground cavern until it resembled something of Frankenstein's laboratory. The unmoving body laying in a chair with a strange electronic visor and wires attached to his head helped scream, 'creepy sci-fi cave'. It was silent and still except for a standing figure, his long, broad fingers typing away at the keyboard to the computer mainframe. The outstanding screen was blank, and the low hum of an unused main board filtered through. His muddled gray eyes turned toward the wired seat, where a man sat hidden by the large visor.

"Talk if you are conscious." His voice was sultry, thick, and slightly chilling with hunger.

Silence only came from the hidden figure.

"I spent enough time on this that it had better be a success." The speaker continued seemingly to no one as he stood, tall and and filled out with proportional muscle. Sadistic thirst glowered in his colorless eyes as he stood, walking over to the seat.

After a moment or so of nothingness he raised a fist to seemingly smash the electronic devise and man under it.

That is when the hand twitched.

His fist halted and eyes darted to the well-groomed, dark-toned hand. The fingers had twitched for a moment, he was sure of it. Then it happened again. Thick fingers clenched and unclenched.

The gray-eyed being now waited with some level of excited patience as the other hand repeated the movement.

Next the left leg moved, the thigh contracting as a foot clad in black_ Baccos_ raised itself a few inches from the ground. The right leg followed suit.

The exercise commenced for several moments while the watcher began to talk, partially to himself and partially to the man sitting before him.

"We will spend a week getting you up to date. You will need to know everything about the times to be successful. The other thing is that everyone thinks you had died. We will have to form a full-proof alibi for where you spent the last... how many was it? Seven years, right. Once we have established an easy history and brushed you up to the modern world I'll release you. Do what you wish to regain your company, I have other business to attend to rather then assisting you to control your company. Consider it a test to prove your worth to me. When I have established some work from other... assistants, I will come back to you for your debt. It will only be one, as a fair price, but it is worth two lives—your and the boy Noah whose body I modified and mind I trapped. Any questions, Gozaboro?"

The visor suddenly lifted, revealing the underhanded businessman, younger though, maybe early twenties. A determined, vaguely mad smile worked upon his chiseled face.

"The mind implication was a success, Tabar."

Tabar made a dry chuckle. "Of course,"

But Gozaboro paid him no heed. "I'll go after that brat. I'll expose him as the weak kid he is. The truth always stung him so much more than lies..."

"I'll make Seto pay."

§

A/N: Sorry about the slight teenage melodrama there, but well... Talla is almost a teen. And her past isn't just a Mary-Sue 'I'm just like you, love me' bullshit either. It does have a purpose to the plot, I swear! Anyways, review and tell me what you think! Remember, whatever story gets the most posts per chapter I update first and I currently have 3 going so...


	9. Facades: Of Sorrow and Joy

_I am a dominant gene - Live as I die  
Never say forever cause forever's a lie  
I can see right through it so I can't ignore you  
The story changes but the ending will bore you _

I tried to tell you but you simply obeyed  
They didn't listen so they threw you away

_-'30/30-150' by Stoned Sour_

§

The line between true friendship and polite acquaintances is undefined and fluctuation, yet easy to cross with careful steps. However Yami had neither of these with the haunting Amun woman.

Yugi was currently in control of the body, the golden puzzle glowing as the transparent mirror image of Atem rested a little ways away.

"You were a little...forward." The boy said finally, breaking the thoughtful silence between them.

"Was I? I need her to believe so badly... I don't know what to do." When the pharaoh admitted he was lost, they were six feet under and blue.

Worried violet eyes turned to the spirit. "Why though? Why does she need to know now?"

"Something is about to happen, don't you feel it?"

The mortal nodded his head slowly. "Yes but why are you so sure it has to deal with Kakra or Kestrel?"

The elder closed his crimson gaze for a moment. "I...I had another dream... I kept it separate from your mind because... Yugi I don't want you to see it."

Intrigued and worried the modern duelist approached the image of the spirit cautiously and sat beside him, gripping the puzzle in his hands.

"You can't keep this to yourself. Yami it's eating you up... besides, I've dealt with everything before!" He winked and gave a gentle smile that captured much of his essence.

The spiky-haired king hesitated for a moment, before relenting. The mental barriers broke down around his thoughts and the dream swam through both of their thoughts. It flashed before their eyes, making the safety of the bedroom disappear.

§

_He shut the door behind him, and the faint click of stone upon wood had never sounded so loud in his ears. The torch beside him flickered, as if sensing his mood. The shadows searched out to swallow the tiny flame, glowing brightly yet smaller. Fading and fading until..._

_A bronze fist matched the dark russet of the wall. Pain beamed into his arm from the impact of bone upon stone, and small rivulets of cardinal formed, a few drops splattering to the hard ground below._

_**It wasn't supposed to be like this! When she came back, it was all supposed to be okay. But now...**_

_He cursed aloud, something he had only done once before in recollection._

_**Will I ever get Kakra back now? She is right behind that door and yet she has never been farther from me.**_

_As the outburst of frustration subsided he shut his eyes, and let his hand tense back to the side of the burgundy cloak._

_**This is not helping anyone. I'll let her rest for the night and tomorrow I'll go in with Mahad and see if he can detect anything wrong in he aura.**_

_Feeling slightly more confident with a plan, he took steps away. The hollowness of his own sandaled feet striking stone made his pause the procession. Red eyes narrowed and filled with a guilty sadness._

_**Kakra, my friend... what happened to you for those days after we found Seto? **_

_The swirling of emotions: guilt, frustration, helplessness, fury; all so unusual for him turned his legs around and made him race the few steps toward her door again. With little conscious thought he flung the flimsy piece of wood separating him and his childhood friend._

_The room was brightly lit, candles burning at every possible surface so that it seemed an oasis to the dark of night. The tenderly laid bed had been viciously torn apart, linens ripped and reed mat lying in an upturn crisp. Sitting on the floor among the mess was a young woman. Her tawny hair had been hacked off unevenly with a knife. Strands of the golden thread littered by her curled up form. The said knife was still in her shaking hands. Blood poured from the self-inflicted wound reaching long up her arm. Wordless tears ran down her normally cheery face. But the eyes, which once glowed in their bird-like color with life and dreams and hope... They were half-hollowed, half-hating._

_The world stopped at the threshold and there was now a new one, a horribly twisted one where she now was._

_"Kakra!"_

Of course Yami left out the end of the vision. He and his subject had trooped to her room and discovered the horrors that had slowly been killing the woman.

_"My pharaoh she has been..."_

No, he would not tell innocent Yugi that.

§

Montague Pia looked down at the bright, expressive cerulean eyes. The younger employer's friend was a confident, proud child. His chin held high, slightly haughty but more or less self-assured. He was subconsciously warding off any challenges through his body language. Show no fear, and no one will be able to scare you. The older man, throughout his long years of life had seen this ploy many times before. It bored him, but he especially liked this child. The bush of black hair had become a welcome sight in the manor and the good keeper was not about to ruin that.

"Third door on your left, second floor. Would you like a guide Master Mokuba?" His sharp, accented voice replied after a moment.

Shaking his head, th Kaiba brother walked past. "No, I can find my way."

The head employee even let the lack of thanks slide by. The two sisters he worked for needed this strange boy.

§

Mokuba followed the man's directions and found himself before a redwood door. He had taken this time while Talla had searched for her beloved pet. Apparently Dante had a bad habit of chasing small animals... and bringing them back inside as carcasses. It was one of the down points as owning a wolf hybrid, he had decided. However the student pushed those thoughts away from his mind. He had more pressing issues. Raising his fist with only the born certainty of his blood, he knocked twice on the door.

A vague shuffling commenced inside the room, and soon the door was open. Amber eyes blinked once, taking in the smaller figure before breaking into a warm smile.

"Hello Mokuba, would you like to come in?"

It was the beginner younger's turn to be surprised. _Seto always treats his office like it is private. He'll let me in but I know when he is in there, he doesn't want to be bothered. Is Kess really so different from him? Is that bad?_

"Sure," He finally managed to say, stepping into the office.

It was artsy, charming, and abstract—much like the rest of the house.

Her sister's best friend took a seat and the CEO offered him virgin sangria and a small dish of sweets. Mokuba had never seen such pleasantries in his brother's office either.

After watching the boy eat for a moment, the blond folded her hands and sat her head on them, relaxing her poise deliberately.

"So Mokuba was there anything you wanted to ask me?"

The co-owner's chews got slower, and he finally slowed. _Where do I begin?_

"You have weird food." It was the first thing he could think of.

The medic chuckled in amusement. "How so?"

There was a certain ambiance about the elder Amun that allowed even the most unusual tangents to flow like cream.

"Well... Seto never has any candy in his office. And your food at dinners... I've never seen some of the stuff."

She was pretty, the blue-eyed brother noted with a faint blush. Not awe-gaping beauty, but a charming glow and an understanding smile that seemed to draw you in. The businesswoman had enough going for her to be labeled as very attractive, but not enough to inspire that fearful humble that she was untouchable.

"I've traveled around the world a lot." The doctor replied. "And become a bit of a food snob for foreign foods." She winked.

"The candy is for Talla, when she comes in here."

"She does that a lot?"

A kind of softening crossed her features. "You don't go into your brother's office a lot, do you?"

He looked down and still defended the object of his admiration. "No... Seto's really busy. I don't want to bother him anyways he has to work so..."

A slender-fingered hand held itself up in both retreat and quiet.

"It's alright Mokuba. I know your brother loves you."

A grin broke out on the kid's face.

The woman continued, clearing her throat. "You see, though I treat Talla differently then your brother treats you because of... shall we say our bonds? Kaiba is your elder brother—your unconditional protector and family. You are both linked forever in blood, and knowing that you can always be sure that your brother is always there for you. Talla and I don't share blood. I love her more than anyone else, but I always worry that she may never know it... because there isn't that binding link between us. That is why I always put her first, allow her in everything... Oh, we fight and I've punished her, but... I always have that fear that she will never know just how much I care about her. That is the difference between us Mokuba. Ah, but you've let me run. What was it you really came to ask me?"

Processing this information took the younger brother a long time. _She was honest with me, I think I can trust her..._

"Talla, she called me two nights ago."

Even as he fell silent Kestrel did not interrupt, but waited with seemingly everlasting patience.

"She said that she had to cancel this week's dinner."

By her reaction, the elder sister had not heard of this new development. She bit her tongue to keep from asking why, but the question hung open in her quizzical brow and faint frown lining her smooth brow under tawny bangs.

"She told me all about her parents and how you saved her. But then she said that something... something was wrong with you. I just wanted to know..." _How to help? What is it?_

A look of certain melancholy washed over her calm, happy face.

"She must really trust you to tell you about her past."

"Not enough to tell me about yours." The younger Kaiba was not about to be put off.

A dark look scattered across, quickly replaced by the charismatic smile. "She just worries. I am sure you do that with your brother."

Mokuba's face was lit with hard determination and for a moment he looked **a lot** like his elder.

"She was crying."

To his amazement, this news didn't surprise the CEO.

"Talla is a girl of extremes. When she is happy she is ecstatic. If you are unfortunate enough to make her angry, she is snarling. When Talla is sad, she is ridden. My sister is a person of laughter and tears without a middle. Do you understand?"

Slowly he nodded, black mane shaking.

"So then there is nothing wrong?

The older Amun laughed and waved. "Nothing at all, except for perhaps dealing with a very determined old lady who refuses to take the medicine I give her. But I doubt you can even help there."

Taking this as some sort of dismissal, the youngest brother smiled and stood from his chair. He paused in mid-step, turning toward the door.

_I want to believe that nothing is wrong but..._

_"They both live with their pain and they are strong because of it."_

_Talla said that Kestrel and Seto are alike. When Seto is hurt, he doesn't show it but sometimes I can see it if I look..._

The innocent blue-eyed gaze shifted back up to her face, catching onto the bird-like orbs. He searched, finding what he had feared. That back shadow, a glimpse behind the mask—pain.

Both the man and the woman's masks had a whole in their eyes. And Mokuba saw right through it.

_A mask of indifference, a cloak of happiness. It seems my brother isn't the only one who hides his feelings._

_§_

A smirk played across chillingly handsome features as hard blue eyes stared down the laptop screen.

_Stocks up 3 points._

Apparently selling his merchandise to Mikagi Corp had been a good idea after all. The red percentage of the pie graph just kept growing.

Small knocks from the outside of the door disturbed Kaiba's perpetual peace. A frown rapidly replaced itself on his face.

"Who is it?" He growled.

_If one of those idiots have screwed something over again..._

Familiar blue eyes met his own as the boy walked inside, slightly hesitant.

"Sorry to bother you big bro,"

The angry edge vanished immediately at the sight of the boy. Seto gave him a questioning look and replied. "What's wrong?"

Mokuba had to prevent himself from wincing at this question. But the black-haired child's resolve was set.

"Nothing I just... wondered if you weren't that busy that maybe... it's okay, I'll come back later." Alright, maybe not set enough to deal with the infamous CEO.

Before the younger could make his escape through the door however, a powerful hand was placed on his shoulder.

"It's fine. What did you want to talk about?" _What is wrong? _Was the unspoken question between the two siblings. Dark azure orbs were slanted in worry.

The pupil managed to look his brother in the face as he spoke.

"Seto... Talla canceled our dinner."

He scoffed. "Is that it?"

"But Kestrel re-appointed it."

An eyebrow quirked. "So?"

"She... Talla cried last night."

"..."

"She said that something had happened to her adoptive mother."

"Mokuba," His silky monotone reflected the sterile silver walls around them. Impersonal and business-focused, there was a flicker of emotion in th way the long-fingered hand still held onto the smaller shoulder.

But the brother of the famous dueling prodigy had to look away from the man's discerning glare. Words gathered themselves clumsily onto his tongue. The clean slate of his atmosphere did nothing to inspire him either.

After a stretched-over moment a voice permeated the still, charged air.

"Yeah bro," It was Mokuba's small reply.

"What is going on?" The second-place champion was impatient. His brother was concerning him with this strange behavior. _If that woman has done anything to my brother..._

"I need to ask you something." _Now is a good time as ever. I need to ask this question anyways. _

"Hm,"

"Seto..." Two eyes bore into each other as family stood in the same room, tense and yet at ease.

"What did Gozaboro do to you?"

§

Yami was still not quite sure what had possessed him to grab his keys and cards, look up Amun in the yellow pages, and drive to her house... mansion. He would have been astounded if he had not been at the Kaiba Manor more than once. However this place was smaller and more charming.

_Except for the fact that she thinks we're lunatics._

The dismal thoughts slowed the man's steps toward her door. The guards had let him in due to his reputation as a duelist. However the balding employee that awaited him once he entered did not seem as keen.

_How long do you think it takes for her to send us to the asylum? Oh well... maybe I could talk to her there if she treated us._

_"Yugi that is not funny. I am not spending time in a room with white walls—it bothers me." _

_"Don't worry, we'll probably end up in one of those yellow cushioned ones."_

The pharaoh had knowledge of a psych institute from one of his host's classes last year, AP psychology. They had visited a mental hospital and since the spirit ran up a bit short on common media compared to his friends, he was fascinated in learning. The hospital itself had fascinated him. Was that white jacket tying that woman down magic? Were the walls white to ward off evil? It had been an interesting day for both the teen and the 5,000 year old attachment.

"Who are you?" The tall figure asked at once, eying them carefully.

"I am Yugi Muto. I'm here to see Ms. Amun." It was decided that the boy would control the shared vassal for now. After all, the innocently cute duelist was less likely to scare the woman than a handsomely dark one.

"Does Ms. Amun know you are coming? I don't have you here on the appointment list." Montague strummed through the papers without taking his wary gaze off the teen. He looked harmless enough but there had been that one time that kid had come to meet with his elder charge to ask her on a date and was a bit too... determined for his own good.

The spiky-haired prodigy had the grace to shuffle his feet, even if his violet gaze never lowered.

"Not exactly... but it is really important! Could you just tell Kestrel that we're here?"

A thick eyebrow arched at the name, but the good employee said nothing else as he walked upstairs, nodding for the thick-muscles security guard to keep an eye on them as he left.

§

A strong rap on the office door brought amber orbs away from green ones.

"Come in,"

Montague stuck his sharp-featured head through the door.

The adoptive mother and daughter were sitting across from each other in the room, obviously disrupted in an important conversation.

"What is it Montague?" The elder spoke first, clearing her throat and letting the facade fall once again.

"There is a boy by the name of Yugi Muto downstairs wishing to see you. I am obliged to ask whether Dante gets a new chew toy or you get an audience.

An almost cartoon -like groan escaped her lips as Kess brought her hands to kneed through straight locks of hair.

"Oh no, he's the crazy kid I almost got ran over by."

"So Dante then..." Montague assumed.

"No, we can't have our dog go after a disabled kid it's immoral!" The blond's amusing reply.

"How's he crazy?" Talla asked from her seat.

The CEO rubbed her temples. "He thinks I am reincarnation from some past woman in Egypt... look at me, I'm not even Egyptian!"

However the brunette smiled somewhat evilly. "Sounds fun..."

"Talla no!"

Too late her finger stretched for the girl. The force of nature called Mikagi Talla had once again been set into motion. This time it stormed for unsuspecting little Yugi Muto.

§

**I live off reviews... Please don't let me starve!**


	10. Blood to Heal

_Memories are just where you laid them_

_Dragging the waters til the depths give up their dead_

_What did you expect to find?_

_Was it something you left behind?_

_Don't you remember anything I said when I said,_

_Don't fall away and leave me to myself_

_Don't fall away and leave love bleeding in my hands, in my hands again_

_And leave love bleeding in my hands, in my hands_

_Love lies bleeding_

_-Hemorrhage by Fuel_

§

_"Seto... What did Gozobora do to you?"_

The words forced the infamous CEO to tense in his chair. A hard-stuck chord vibrated deep within and memories washed up. The paralyzing fear, bitter acrimony, stubborn resistance—each lingered long enough to be instantly dispelled.

_That man is dead now. None of that matters anymore_. He reminded himself sternly.

A frown narrowed the elder's features as he stared at his brother.

"What do you mean?"

Mokuba shifted uncomfortably under cold blue eyes. While the anger he caught there wasn't directed at his person; he felt guilty for being the cause of it.

"I mean... I know he was mean and worked you hard, what exactly did he **do**?

The scowl deepened, wrinkling Kaiba's smooth brow._ No way in hell am I telling him what went on between me and that man. Mokuba is too innocent, too good._

"Why do you want to know?"

The black-haired kid lowered his gaze, the reply burning a hole in his mind.

_You know that woman you seem to hate?_

"Talla... she said something about Kestrel and I just thought... Well you remind me of her a little."

_You're just like her. _

"Hm," The duelist scoffed. "How so?"

The hard look on his face faltered as honest azure eyes met his face again, searching across the stoic plane.

"You both..."

_Act so strong no matter how much pain you feel. You hide._

But the intelligent youth loved the chilled brunette too much, adored him too deeply, to say that.

"Never mind, I'm just being silly, bro."

The other Kaiba turned and made a quick flee toward the silver door. However a gentle pressure on his shoulder stopped the beeline.

"Mokuba..." The softer tone of the man's voice brought young blue eyes back up to him. The proud teen debated mentally for a moment.

"Gozobora taught me to lead a company, to sacrifice. But that is all in the past now, so forget about him. It no longer matters to anyone." The introverted words told the boy little, but somehow it was what he had needed to hear.

He returned a slight answer with a broad grin. "Thanks big bro, for everything."

Rubbing it off as best he could, the number one bachelor made a noise with his throat and then went back to the soft glow of the laptop.

Still smiling, the grade-schooler dismissed himself with a final glance back at his last family member.

_Where would I be without you?_

The head of Kaiba Corp didn't pause in his typing until he heard the door shut behind him. Then the patter of fingers fell useless as the odd conversation replayed in his head. After a moment of contemplation, a well-manicured hand began its rhythm on the black board again.

_That woman is getting into all my business, and stirring up Mokuba. _Even as he thought of this, his anger seemed somewhat forced. Why would that be?

_"Thanks big bro, for everything."_

It wasn't like the kid had needed to say that. Just seeing him smile was enough. Right?

_"Thanks big bro, for everything."_

Or maybe, just a little, Seto had liked hearing his brother understand a little of the sacrifice he paid for him. Maybe, just a little, Amun had known that too. Of course, he'd rather be fed to ravenous dogs than every admit it.

§

"Are you in position?"

"Hai,"

"Target locked?"

"No... they're is two of them. Which one am I supposed to go for?"

"What do you mean, two of them?"

"Two brats are in sight. Which one of them is the target."

"...Hold one moment, continue trailing."

"Fine."

There was a long pause and he followed the two people farther into the park.

"Still there?"

"Hai,"

"Good. You are supposed to go for the boy."

"...They both have hair longer than yours and they're wearing jackets."

"So?"

"I can't tell which is male without the possibility of detection."

"Kuso!"

"So which one do you want me to eliminate?"

The pair had stopped, conversing by a fountain with happy faces.

"..."

"Are you listening?"

"The black-haired one."

"Huh?"

"Your target... that kid Kaiba has black hair."

"Alright. Target locked."

One, two, three...

"You have the clear. Commence extermination."

"Hai."

The radio clicked off as he stepped from the shadows, gun in hand.

BOOM!

"What the fuck? You stupid—"

CRACK

The radio turned back on.

"Target eliminated."

§

Kestrel Amun was sitting in a restaurant, fiddling with her chopsticks. She glanced over at the boy Talla had ever so** generously** set her up with.

_When I get back that girl is going to be in so much..._

Her thoughts were disrupted by Yugi's gentle smile.

"You don't have to eat if you're not hungry, you know."

When the man she had talked to earlier suddenly appeared before her several years younger, the CEO had been shocked and wondering is something had gotten mixed up with her incense. However, after she asked about it and he used the strange necklace hanging around his neck to turn into an older, more mature counterpart, the woman was quite sure someone had doped her drink.

She still wasn't sure if this wasn't just the effects of crack. But, she was here and so was he, a bit nicer and not so pushy on the whole Egypt thing.

_If he wasn't crazy, he's be pretty nice._

And that was what led up to the blond placing her utensils down in utter defeat.

"You're... you're not going to do that age thing again are you?"

Yugi smiled at her wariness.

"I won't force you to believe me, Kestrel. After all, it is pretty far fetched."

_Insane and polite, that's new._

"Then why exactly... am I here?" The medic asked, openly bewildered.

Warm violet eyes met her own. "I just want to get to know you, okay? Once I build some trust, then we'll talk about the past. Deal?"

His outstretched palm was smaller than her own, but calloused and slit with fumbling of the sharp-edged cards.

_It can't hurt anything I suppose. This kid is sweet anyways._

The elder Amun smiled and shook the hand.

"I accept, though it is going to be hard to gain my trust." Her golden eyes glimmered in a challenge.

_"I will do it." _Yami chuckled in the back of his mind.

On the outside, the dueling prodigy only winked. "Okay,"

Kess clapped her hands together. "So where to next?"

_Good question, any ideas? _The boy asked his counterpart.

_"We should take her to meet our friends. After all, crazy people don't have friends like Tea and Joey."_ Yami mentally replied with pride.

_And Tristan, _The spiky-haired teen reminded Atem. "How about we go to see some of my friends? I know they'd love to meet you, and you'll get along with them great."

Before the businesswoman could reply however, a phone from inside her pocket rang.

"Sorry," She muttered, retrieving the singing metal object.

A frown appeared on her face as she read the caller-id. _Sis_

"I have to take this, it's my sister." The doctor told the man politely, who nodded in understanding.

Her slender fingers opened the phone. "Hello, Talla?"

There was a choking sound of the other end of the line. "Kess?"

She caught her adoptive daughter's tears and felt her heart clamp. "What's wrong?"

Another half-sob. Her tears were being choked half-way out by fury. "It—It's M—M—MOKUBA!"

Mouto looked worriedly at her as he heard a hysterical voice through the cell phone and its owner winced.

"What happened to him, Talla?"

Her sobs had completely dissolved now, leaving only gaping rage.

"We were taking a walk around the park and then this man came up and... and..." She was dissolving again.

The woman felt rather than saw, the blood drain from her face as her knuckled gripped the phone tighter.

"Sis, calm down. What did he do?" The trained physician was already taken over, logic ruling over the sickening feeling in her stomach.

The calm of her caretaker's voice calmed the distressed brunette enough to utter the next words.

"He shot him."

All was still, all was silent. And then the moment broke. Shoving emotions away, Kestrel turned to her training, letting it rule her actions.

"Talla call the hospital, get an ambulance out there stat. I'll meet you at Mikagi."

Clasping her phone shut, the woman closed her eyes for a moment before opening them, filled with grim determination on the shocked teen with her.

"I need to borrow your car."

§

Seto Kaiba was annoyed when someone called his personal cell line and more so when the name blinked: Amun.

"What is it?" He growled, forcing anger out of him this time.

"Meet me at Mikagi hospital." Her voice had a strange quality he had never heard—it was completely flat, like on auto drive.

"Why?" The man demanded, narrowing his blue eyes.

"Your brother was shot."

The phone clattered to the ground before the line disconnected.

§

"Whoa—are you sure you don't want me to drive?" The younger Mouto asked, clinging to his seat as his car took another dangerous turn at the hand of the fierce driver.

"I'm sorry, but speed is of the essence."

_"She sounds just like Kaiba." _The pharaoh noted.

_Yeah, she must be really worried about Mokuba. _The host mentally replied.

He felt hesitance until the spirit spoke up again after a pause.

_"Yugi, let me handle the body right now."_

He blinked. _Why?_

The tri-color haired man took his time in replying.

_"I don't think you should be there if the worst happens."_

The woman took another sharp corner, dodging between two heavy trucks.

_Ok._

This time when the light flared and Yami's subtly changed features sat beside her, the elder Amun merely glanced and gritted her teeth.

He observed her tense set with crimson eyes. All emotion (and color) had been peeled away from her face, a mechanism used by practiced doctors.

"What do you want me to do when we get there?" Atem provided distraction, and it was a valid question.

He had walked past Mikagi Hospital once. It was bigger than their school, and he still got lost there. Plus he was a novice at best in medical technology, being 5,000 years slow.

She grinned the bumper of the car before her, forcing it to speed and swerve away from the inconsiderate driver.

"Stay in the Waiting Room. Say that you're a friend of Kestrel, the staff will meet your needs."

And despite the desperation of the situation, despite the monotone of her voice and the pale quality of her expression, despite the suicidal driving; the king of Egypt almost smiled. In the end, he had gained the trust of the pretty woman after all.

§

The CEO of Kaiba Corp stormed into Mikagi Hospital with snarls and death-glares at any who approached. Even the pistol-carrying security seemed uneasy to approach the infamous man on a warpath. He wasn't sure where he was going, only one thought registered in his mind.

_Mokuba is hurt. _

It brought waves of emotions in a usually cold person. Guilt at having failed as his self-appointed duty of protector, sorrow from knowing the one person he truly loved was in pain, fear of loosing the boy, and anger at whoever had done this to someone so innocent. Kaiba shoved anger toward the front, using it as a wall between all weakening feelings. He didn't stop the crazed tread until he spotted a familiar head of tawny hair, sticking out from under a white jacket that was being roughly thrown on a slender form.

Amun was giving out orders, standing beside a wheeling tray carrying a figure with matted black hair. Nameless people in white were beside her, following out the woman's commands without question. Before the business rival could elude him, the brunette caught her, the almost tangible waves of fury alerting her to his presence.

"What the hell happened?" He demanded, not noticing how his throat was constricting or his face was bleached.

However the physician before him noted the signs. "I'm taking him in for surgery. Waase here will update you."

"I am not laving my brother!" The blue-eyed teen spat with hurt rage.

The shorter figure spun on her heels, her facade lessening a little. "Kaiba if you interrupt this surgery you could Mokuba. I promise to save him, but you must let me work. Go wait."

There was a gentle firmness in her tone before the leader of a company was back again, barking orders and running after a wheeled cart.

Somehow her words had sapped the anger in the other man, and he could do nothing but trudge blindly back to the waiting room, his dark aura enough to clear the path. Slowly, the duelist sat down in a chair, frustrated with his head on his folded hands. Never had he felt so... useless.

"What did she say?"

The older brother turned swiftly with a snappy retort along the lines of 'shut the hell up', but it never left his lips as wide forest eyes met his.

The younger Amun was in a worse state then he was. Dried blood stained her matted brown hair. The normally tanned skin was pale and wet from tears. Her clothes were soaked with more red substance, and the man felt nauseous at the good idea that they were not the girl's. Curbing his response, the businessman gave a curt sentence.

"She wants me to wait here."

Talla gave a snort, and would have rolled her eyes if her heart had been a fraction lighter.

"About Mokuba?"

His cerulean eyes shut for a moment, recalling something as normal as a conversation amidst all this confusion.

"...She promised to save him."

And then slowly, the girl smiled.

"Then it's alright."

Seto was about to ask the girl what pills she had taken when the younger brunette smiled.

"Kess never breaks her promises."

The rich-boy tensed, no longer seeing Talla before him. Cursing under his breath, he stood and got one step before a stranger in white came running up to both of them.

_Why the hell do they all wear white?_

He was a young man, sandy-blond hair and warm green eyes. His sparrow-like features were lined with concern.

"Talla here, sorry I had to find you." The doctor said, handing his boss's daughter a clean shirt.

"Thanks, Waase." She replied, walking to the bathroom to change.

"Wait," The blond now called Waase held her wrist, his frown deepening as vivid green orbs caught sight of the blood in her rich cocoa locks.

"Were you hurt too?" His voice was mellow but refined, without accent.

Azure eyes paused, locked onto the female figure.

Her hand instinctively touched the top of her head, making her cringe. "It's not bad."

But Waase had already sat her down and called for a sterile kit and some gauze. "Sorry Talla, but your sister will have my head if she finds out you've been untreated."

A sudden realization popped into the tallest one's head and he sat back down beside the adoptive daughter.

"You were there, what happened?" He left no room for argument.

The doctor gave him a look at treating a patient so rough, but Mokuba's friend didn't mind.

_At least he has a reason to be a jerk right now._

"We were taking a walk around the park when a guy with a gun came out and shot him. Then he bashed me on the—ow!" Green-hazel eyes winced then glared at the swift fingers cleaning the wound on her head.

"Sorry," Waase said calmly, finishing up the bandage.

The student shook her head experimentally, then stood up. "I'm going to make sure all the floors are running smooth. Knowing Kess, she pulled the top physicians on each level to help her so every thing's going to be a little hectic."

With that, the 12-year old bounded off, lost in the continuous stream of the hospital. The handsome CEO watched her go, feeling apathy and jealousy twinge in.

_Even that kid is good for something. But what can I do? It's a joke._

"Hey buddy," Waase signaled for the duelist and got the get-the-fuck-out-of-my-face glare.

"Look, sitting here moping won't do anyone good. Why don't you read a magazine or get a drink."

"Hm," Kaiba replied haughtily.

The doctor sighed before giving up and walking away to more important patients. Only when he was sure the blond was gone did he pick up a magazine and began reading. He even forgot the briefcase.

§

"Blood loss is dangerous right now. It could lead to a coma if he doesn't get a transfusion fast." A sweet voice wrapped from behind her blue mask.

French was heard from under their leader's mask.

"Why don't we give him one then?"

The bullet had been successfully removed, thankfully only clipping the liver, which was stitched back up. But even though the bleeding had stopped, his white skin was dangerously lacking in the life-sustaining liquid.

Her heart bled a little more, but the medic pushed it out of her mind as the answer came.

"He is type O, it's really rare and we ran out of stores yesterday. Shipment comes in tomorrow."

"O, you said." The legendary surgeon repeated sharply.

"Yes," The Head of Stat replied.

The golden-eyed woman was quiet for a moment.

"Give me a syringe. We are doing a direct transfusion."

The other woman blinked in surprise.

"Whose?"

There was no room for fighting it as Kestrel spoke again.

"Mine."

§

The worried brother sat up like he had been bitten in the ass as tired, but twinkling bid-like eyes walked up to him. He was unaware of the 'Woman's Vogue' magazine clutched in his fists. Before he could demand information, the tawny-haired woman held her hand up.

"Mokuba won't even have a scar. He needs rest and some physical therapy for the next month , but nothing lasting."

The brunette opened and closed his mouth several times before words came out.

"This place isn't half bad."

The doctor nodded, pale and weary as she she stood.

"I like it enough."

He felt a little disturbed at her lack of biting remark, but didn't mention it.

"You... you really know what you are doing." He added with as cold a tone as he could.

But the medic smiled nonetheless. "You were really worried about him, weren't you?"

The infamous champion scoffed. "Hm, he's my brother."

"It's nice though, that you care so much." Her passionate voice was blearing, bright eyes drooping.

"Ms.Amun," Waase suddenly ran from behind.

It was just in time too, for the young woman slid to the ground.

"You lost too much blood. Wait here and I'll get you something to drink." The blond fussed for a moment before vanishing.

"How did you loose blood?" The older Kaiba asked, looking down at the figure leaning ahainst the wall.

"To save Mokuba..."

Her eyes opened at this, glowing with something indescribable.

"...Seto."

That night was the first time Kestrel ever said his first name.


	11. Gozobora Kaiba, CEO of KaibaCorp

_If everyone cared and nobody cried_

_If everyone loved and nobody lied_

_If everyone shared and swallowed their pride_

_Then we'd see the day that nobody died_

_And I'm singing_

_Amen I, Amen I, I am alive_

_Amen I, Amen I, I am alive_

_--'If Everyone Cared' by Nickelback_

§

"So do you have any enemies?" Kestrel asked ever so casually over their next Sunday dinner.

"What does that mean?" Kaiba replied, careful to keep his voice low and controlled as the two children chatted across from them.

It was hard to get mad at her, the CEO was finding. A damn shame really, since usually Amun was so vexing. But when look at his younger brother, already two weeks into rehab and happy as ever, and he couldn't help but feel a grudging gratitude.

"Seto," The copper-haired woman began, fiddling with her chopsticks rather than touching the food. "Someone shot your brother."

"So I remember, thanks." The brunette snarled back, an inner nerve stretched. _She's said my name since that night._

Golden eyes blinked for patience and the eating utensils went down. "People don't just shoot kids in the broad daylight with no good reason."

The doctor's voice never got curt now, instead it was a level patience that came from dealing with people in all kinds of distress.

"Mokuba is too smart a child to get involved in something that might have gotten him and trouble, and since the attacker did nothing but hit Talla... We have to assume your brother was being targeted. So I'll ask you again." Those bird-like eyes fixated on him again, a little agitated.

"Do you have any enemies who would do this?"

_That's none of your business! _The phrase tickled the tip of the game company owner's tongue. But the image of the woman, leaning against the wall, sweaty and exhausted, came into view.

_Damn guilt! _He thought savagely. But it was true, there was no way around it. Kestrel had saved Mokuba where his elder had failed.

"None I can think of. But I swear..." The duelist hissed, clenching the chopsticks so hard in his fist, they snapped in two. Blue eyes held that dangerous intensity of Duelist Kingdom.

"...I will find out, and when I do—that person will wish they were dead!"

A dark shadow checkered the female CEO's features.

"You should be thinking of your brother, not your revenge." Her tone had that subtle streak of anger he had come to associate with her.

Behind all the pleasantries, Talla's adoptive mother had quite a temper. It was a task to get her truly riled up, but once done the antagonist would be so utterly bitten off that he or she would mentally huddle in a corner for days. However, the banter between the two older siblings usually consisted of friendly irritation, challenges. That tone was a warning, a subtle separation between their play and a real issue. However, the man ignored it. He suddenly felt as though Sylvester Stallone had just punched his gut. Amun had all but flat out said that he cared more about himself that Mokuba.

"Shut up! You don't know anything about it." Hard cerulean eyes dared her to contradict him.

The pretty businesswoman let it slide however, trying her best to control the rising desire to throttle some sense into the stubborn teen before her.

"Looking for Mokuba's attacker is important; but it should be for the sake of protecting him and not revenge. Remember that Seto... even good ideas go astray with the wrong intention."

His name again. There was a way she said it... some message she was trying to convey that he could not read. Or would not. One of the two.

"Are you saying that I don't care about Mokuba you—" The blue-eyed businessman began with a frighteningly detached voice.

"—Those words did not issue from my mouth and never will they. Ever! Damn it, you're too thick-headed! It was you who said you wanted revenge." Kess hissed in response.

"Hm," _What the hell is she getting at anyways?_

"Oh, just..." The blond woman began irate, her voice loosening by the word.

"...be careful, Seto."

Masked eyed turned to stare at Kestrel in surprise. This was a tangent the careful teen had not predicted. And so the unprepared response came with slight lack of bitterness.

"Of course."

§

Mr. Mouto finished wiping off the glass counters, wiping the sweat of his brow and resting for a moment.

_I'm getting too old for this._ He acknowledged with a sigh, considering calling down the much younger resident of the house to help out. But a smile formed on his lips and he didn't.

_Yugi's probably asleep in his room. After picking up Joey late last night, its not surprising. _

The old man's thoughts led him to think about his grandson's last late night excursion two weeks or so ago. He had been worried sick, of course, when the boy didn't come home. But as he finally walked through the door and explained everything about Mokuba and Kestrel, the anxiety dissipated into pride.

_He's such a hero. Even if he won't admit it. _However the boastful grin slid off his face as another wonderment came across his mind.

_I hope Mokuba is doing alright. _While being the grandfather of the elder Kaiba's rival he felt no concern for him, but the black-haired child managed to install a sense of attachment in everyone he seemed to come into contact with. The tinkling bell of an opening door brought the game shop owner back to reality.

A pretty, albeit, discomforted woman had walked in, eyes surveying the small store.

"May I help you?" The former duelist asked, blinking at the new arrival.

Golden eyes fixated on him and an apologetic smile graced her features.

"Hello. I am sorry to bother you but I am looking for Yugi Mouto. I'm Kestrel Amun."

Lilac eyes widened at the name recognition. "The doctor Yugi told me about? Well, hang on for just a moment and I'll go get him."

The visitor's eyes followed the short frame up the stairs. When he was gone, she ran a hand through her hair. The medic felt bad. She really did. Here this boy she was evaluating for mental diseases had ended up helping her out.

_I have to at least apologize. It was nice of him to lend me his car._

"Hello?" A bleary voice sounded from the top of the steps.

The duelist champion was standing at the top of his stairs in a rumpled outfit, dangling puzzle, wild hair flat, and rubbing his violet eyes.

"I'm sorry to wake you up." The CEO admitted even though it was past ten in the morning.

However at the sound of her voice, the teen seemed to snap awake.

"Kestrel... this is a surprise." A blush was rapidly rising to his fair cheeks at the state of himself.

The elder Amun laughed behind her hand. "I wanted to thank you for your car the other night. It was really kind of you to let me drive, as I'm sure it was at the cost of your own personal safety."

The tri-color haired boy laughed in return at the memory of her frightening driving. "Don't worry about it... How is Mokuba anyways?"

_He really does have a big heart. He's so... sincere. _The blond admitted to herself with a soft smile. "He's doing great. Another few weeks of rehabilitation and that kid will be as healthy as ever."

"That's great!" The host exclaimed before thinking things through a little; with a little prodding from Yami of course. "Say, why don't you wait here for a moment. I'll go get dressed and then you can come meet some people. Okay with you?"

The hawk-like irises shut themselves as she nodded. "I'll wait."

"Don't worry, I won't take long!" The younger Mouto yelled back as he quickly climbed the stairs back up to his bedroom.

_Seto should probably meet him. Then Yugi could rub off a little on him._

§

The CEO of KaibaCorp clenched his fists, turning the knuckles white. Distant blue eyes were wide and dilated with shock. The entire frame of lean muscle was trembling. Of anger.

_Whatever sick bastard thought of this joke is going to pay!_

The cause of this extreme show of emotion in the dubbed rich boy was a simple email. A short, black and white email. From a dead man.

_Seto,_

_I hear that some doctor managed to save the brat, but I'm sure you got the message. I made you kid, and I will break you from your throne. It's payback time._

_--CEO of KaibaCorp, Gozobora Kaiba_

Someone with a twisted sense of humor was going to be shredded to pieces as soon as the enraged man found him. Deft fingers played along the keyboard. A smirk appeared on his lips again.

_This idiot has no idea who he is dealing with. An email? Is there anything more traceable?_

However it soon fell from his face as the computer ID was found.

109HKJ695—KaibaCorp Mainframe.

Gritting his teeth and narrowing his eyes to keep from shouting the brunette seethed.

_Someone is trying to mess with my head. But I won't let them win!_

The adoptive son stood abruptly up. He strode out of the office, catching the first black-suited man his glowering eyes spotted.

"Hey, get a tea down to the mainframe now! Check for any intrusions! Have someone scan the videos for anyone suspicious!"

The unfortunate man blinked twice at the rapt bark of orders.

"Move if you want to have a job for another day."

That got him going. Quickly shaking off his confusion, the businessman walked rapidly down to page Rolland, pausing to whip out his cellphone.

_I have to get Mokuba away from her in case this bastard tries anything else, but where?_

A few months ago, his skilled fingers would grudgingly punch the numbers to the Mouto's house. But now...

"Hello?" A mildly distracted, albeit free, voice sounded.

"Kestrel," It never even registered that he too had begun to address her by the first name.

"Seto, what is it?" Her curious tone asked, not yet worried.

_Note to self: Poke eyes out with toothpick for saying this. _"You have to take Mokuba for a while."

It was a biting, dominative, cruel voice he used to hide vulnerability. But concern only met it from the other line.

"What happened?" There was no ifs. It was definite, and harsh.

"Nothing." He replied gaining control over his vocals again.

"Don't lie to me Seto." The Scorpio was emerging from her again.

The teenage genius debated hanging up on her. But he was, in his own way, asking her for a favor.

_Damn. _

This is why he hated dependency. You couldn't scare the living shit out of the person you needed. You had to be nice.

"Hm, it is just something I am checking into."

"And so you send your brother away?"

"That is just precaution."

"...Do you want me to tell him?" She didn't even bother putting her compliance in words. The man realized that there had never really been a question of whether or not Amun would shelter his brother. She was asking something else he couldn't quite grasp.

"He'd be worried." Seto settled on saying flatly.

There was a long silence until the handsome bachelor cleared his throat and struggled on his tongue.

"Amun..."

"Yes?"

"Thank you." He admitted quickly, before clasping the phone shut after hearing the faint reply.

"Stay safe."

§

The man fell to the ground again, blood spurting from his mouth. Two dark shadows loomed over him in the artificial lighting of the underground room.

"You failed. Failure is not tolerated." The rich, vicarious voice of the background figure echoed in the place.

"How was I supposed to know that he was friends with that doctor bitch?" The bleeding man demanded, earning himself another acquittance with the hard metal pistol. Grunting, he fell to the hard floor again. Crimson dripped from the new gash across his nose. The victim ground his teeth to keep from crying out in pain as the fore fronting man lowered his weapon again.

"Excuses are futile. You were hired to kill the Kaiba brat and you didn't."

"He was shot in the chest. Master Gozobora I really thought..." However a wave of the savvy businessman's hand brought the metal fist of his subordinate back down on the failed assassin.

"You were not paid to think. You were paid to kill. Too bad you'll never have time to rectify that mistake." The shadowy figure raised his hand to make the final motion to his guard.

"Master, Lord, Boss...please don't! Have mer—" His final words of cowardice faded out into a gurgle.

The gunshot still crackled in the air, smelling it of smoke and blood.

"Perhaps you should listen to your own advice, Gozobora."

The living henchmen instinctively raised his gun toward the new presence.

"You!" The reborn man uttered, a frown raising on his face. _It's not good if he came in person._

"Do you intend to shoot me?" The new presence seemed amused at the insignificant piece of metal now.

His mad smirk fell across the dark face as the adoptive father waved for his employee to pocket the gun.

Leave us." The former CEO of KaibaCorp commanded, sending his silent killer out of the room.

A faint breeze of silence passed between the two males. One looked agitated and impatient, while the other had disdain and boredom.

"You were supposed to have your company by now." His voice was still slick, a haunting melody.

The Kaiba father refused to allow his body to take a step away and instead settled for gritting his new teeth.

"I am almost done." He was thankful for the lack of sweat.

This man was not one to piss off by screwing up a given task.

"Ah, but it is time** now**." Gray eyes gleamed with crazed light. "You have failed, and so should I punish you?"

"Tabat, just give me some more time. I did not account for that stupid doctor to get involved.

Muddy gray eyes fixated on his form abruptly.

"Doctor?"

The reincarnated man scoffed, secretly glad of this tangent.

"Yes, some woman by the name of Kestrel Amun. She is supposed to be a pretty famous doctor. I was not aware of her bond with my adoptive children."

"Bond?" In stark contrast, his frame was more mad then usual.

"It seems that her and Seto have become chums." The business dealer continued to rant.

"Kestrel... dear Kestrel..." Tabat's entire lean frame shook and a chilling laughter issued from his thin mouth.

"To think that both our prey have joined together..." Gozobora had to make an effort not to flinch at his cynical tone.

"What do you have planned Tabat?" As much as the man was deranged, he was a genius.

The gray-eyed male stopped his laughter, but was half muttering to himself.

"Attached to which brother I wonder? Silly, foolish girl. Haven't I taught her what happens to those she gets close to? Perhaps she needs another lesson..."

§

_Love. Romanticism is such a natural part of our lives that we imagine it has been around forever. But it was the medieval knights who first started the idea of romantic love. Of course, they were later murdered by the Pope who feared their rise to power. But perhaps that best shows us how love works. I wish this story was only and all about love._

_People like to hear a heart-warming tale of a child saved from a fire or high school sweethearts reuniting to marry happily ever after. But even more than that, people are attracted to tragedy. The darker shades of society are hidden and so humankind searches for them. I wish this story was only and all about love. But it isn't._

_What started with a magazine and two kids will become a struggle for their lives. I am writing this now because this was the turning point, and I feel the need to commemorate it. Though I am in this tale, this is not mine. This chronicle is theirs, and I can only record it for something between hope, friendship, and respect. Looking back there are times I wish I knew the result. I could have made their battle so much easier then, stopped so much pain. But other times I am glad I didn't know what was to come. Because as horrible as it was, it ended in something beautiful._

_This is the volume of a curse, and two vicious men. The song of two children and separate companies. But above all it is the revelation of two equally battered hearts finding each other, two broken pieces mending each other. Irony, when I realized the healer held deeper scars then the ones she saved. Heart-wrenching that the CEO had given up more than he got in the end. I tried to save them and failed because only they could save each other. But that is the end of this long road._

_For now things got a lot more complicated then children and magazines._

§

A/N: Any guesses on who the 1st person narrative was done by at the end? Oh, and as a warning, I use a lot of symbolics in my writing. So if you have any questions just drop me a line and I'll answer within the week. If you have no idea what I mean by symbolics I'll give you a few examples of ones I've used so far.

The name Kestrel

Color of the eyes—gray and golden

Houses—art vs technology

Luv ya all and don't forget to review!


	12. Remembering to Laugh

_You may not see the end of it  
But luckily she comes around  
It isn't what she talks about  
It's just the way she is _

..and she says  
Ooh darlin' don't you know  
The darkness comes and the darkness goes  
...and she says  
Ooh babe why don't you let it go?  
Happiness ain't never how you think it should be so

I mystified the simple life  
I covered up with consciousness  
I saw myself and broke it down  
'Til nothing more was left  
She saw the symptoms right away  
And spoke to me in poetry  
"Sometimes the more you wonder why  
The worse it seems to get"

...and she says  
Ooh darlin don't you know  
The darkness comes and the darkness goes  
...and she says  
Ooh babe why don't you let it go?  
Happiness ain't never how you think it should be so  
But she runs away  
She runs away...  
—"She Runs Away" by Duncan Sheik

§

_Jude, Taylor, and Tristan... or was it Jay, Toyaa and— _The names of the three new people scrambled in the usually collected young woman.

However Kestrel could not be at full blame for her distraught mind frame behind the charming smile. She had just gotten what was probably the strangest call in her life.

Scratch that, Amun was **sure** it was the weirdest phone call in her life.

**The** Seto Kaiba had actually come out and asked for her help. _And thanked me for it. _The mental figure scratched its head inside her thoughts.

"It's so nice to meet you Kestrel." A cute brunette girl exclaimed, warmth in her blue eyes.

_Blue eyes like... NO! _The businesswoman halted her stream immediately. _No way **in hell **am I obsessing over **Seto Kaiba**._

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well." The trained phrases rolled off her tongue without need for focus or thought.

Yugi had taken her to a local restaurant that his friend's had called him about. It was just a simple diner, but the CEO was glad no one had seemed to notice her. Paparazzi was not something she could deal with right now; and it would not look good for a medical company if their head went berserk and landed one of the camera-wielding demons into the hospital.

The two boys were eating at a table and playing a card game, intent on the faces and points for a while.

"And my Flame Swordsman attacks your monster! That leaves you with ZERO!" The blonde youth shouted, jumping in the air with excitement.

The brunette male sighed and shoved out the money for another rice bowl.

"Here you g—" He tried to say, not finishing before the coinage was snatched away and the winner was buying his food.

"Same old Joey." Yugi commented while he slid to sit next to the loser.

Accepting this as an invitation along with the only other girl's wave, the amber-eyed woman sat down across from her connection.

_Joey, so that means it's Tea and... Tristan._

"Hey, I saw your picture in the paper the other day." The one she now recognized as Tristan jabbed a finger her way, brown eyes squinted.

"Did you now?" The medic asked with a small laugh. _Dear Kami please don't let him yell it..._

"Since when do you read the newspaper Tristan?" The sandy-haired teen had returned, hands wrapped possessively around a rice bowel with chicken.

The other boy glared up at his friend. "Since I learned to read. It's a skill you could use."

"Oh yeah, and when did you learn to read? Last month?"

"Why you ungrateful little..."

"Do you wanna start something here?"

Tea put her head down, giving out an exasperated sigh as the smallest male cringed in embarrassment.

"Yup, same old Joey and Tristan." The dancer muttered before sticking her head back up and swatting away the rich brown locks.

"But come to think of it Kestrel... I've seen your picture in the newspaper as well."

The host stopped a sad attempt at peacekeeping between his two best friends who promptly turned around.

"Really? What for?" The one called Joey asked.

Despite the normalcy the scene seemed to present for the rest of people viewing, the elder Amun was sure she ruined it with a mildly amused and baffled expression on her face.

"You are the great surgeon who saved Mokuba!" The cheerleader remembered, euphoria washing over her face suddenly.

"You? You're a doctor?" The mutt blinked cutely.

Still thanking the gods that no sudden paparazzi had appeared from under that horribly fake plant in the corner, the tawny-haired individual replied.

"Yes, though Yugi helped me with that particular case."

"Hey, I remember that now. She's the car-lady right Yug?" The foehawk sporting one punched a fist into his hand for emphasis.

_Car lady? _The adoptive mother wondered while her duelist friend blushed.

"Yeah, that's her... but her **name** is Kestrel."

"Eh, thanks for saving the kid." The second-rate dueler said honestly as he sat his finished rice bowel down.

The charismatic female smiled appreciatively. "It's what I do."

Gardner put her head on her hands and shut her eyes to imagine.

"That's so great... to be able to save people everyday."

_The dreamer..._ The caramel-haired CEO noted as she spoke.

"It works for me."

"Geez Tea, you talk like we've never saved anyone." Wheeler muttered as he stabbed at some pork that had appeared out of nowhere.

_The underdog... _"Oh, Yugi didn't tell me about you're work. What do you do?"

The street rat paused in mid bite and got himself slapped by his other sister figure.

"Shut up Joey! It's not the same thing." A tick in her forehead twitched and the newcomer couldn't help but laugh softly.

At their questioning glances, the businesswoman complied with an answer.

"My apologies. It's just that I work a lot with a company and sometimes forget what its like to just... have fun, I guess."

The older brother was shoveling noodles into his mouth and paused to wink and beam.

"Themyumhaftahaphoufwifus." A food-filled mouth proclaimed.

His best friends cringed while the CEO of Mikagi Corp blinked in surprise.

"Ew!"

"Om... Joey you should probably eat your food before you talk."

"Yeah man! Not even I understood that."

"Wham? Om, sossy." The blonde teen swallowed the noodles with a large gulp before wiping his face.

"What I was saying is that you should hang more with us! That way we can show you how to have fun... what?" The last part was added when the hazel-eyed young man realized that the pretty girl in front of him was actually staring with something between shock and amazement.

Several blinks shut and opened honey-toned orbs before speech returned to Kestrel.

"Do you... usually eat that much?" _That was rude! _She mentally slapped herself.

Joey made a confused face at the bizarre question. "Om... yeah, why?"

Her eyes roved over him again. Nope, she hadn't missed an extra 200 lbs.

"But you're so... not overweight. What do you do?" The genuine intrigue and slight awe in her tone made the puzzle-holder smile.

The comment might have been offensive if she didn't seem to truly curious. That just made it cute.

The golden-haired male rose in his chair with a dramatic poise.

"You know, chasing after danger and helping people out in need. It's a lot of work." He tried to rub the back of his nape in fake humility.

"More like running away from danger." Tristan murmured with a sigh.

His friend raised a fist. "You wanna repeat that?"

This time the older Amun couldn't help but laugh, not able to completely stop even as Tea apologized for her 'immature monkeys' behavior.

As the antics ensued her eyes met that of the young man who brought her here and a silent message was sent between them.

_Thank you for bringing me here. I'm happy._

_See, I can help you to remember what is like to laugh. That's all I really wanted to do._

The horrible nightmares of reality seemed so far away in that colorful diner, with these happy people.

But it would soon reappear, harder than before.

§

Mokuba's eyes wandered around the guest room, but they saw nothing.

"What's up?"

The coal-haired individual nearly jumped at the unexpected voice. Instead he wheeled around to see his friend, casually leaning by the door with her 'pet' beside her. The question regaled itself in his mind and the boy shrugged.

"Nothing, thanks for letting me stay."

Talla snorted and rolled her eyes as she moved into the room, Dante at her heels... or rather hips.

"Look if you're going to lie, at lease make it a **little** convincing."

The younger Kaiba dropped the facade at the girl's bluntness.

"It's not that I don't like staying here, I really do. It's just that something has happened... something Seto's not telling me about and it's probably dangerous. That's why he's sent me here and I'm just..."

"Worried? Don't be." The owner of forest hued eyes simply said.

"How could I not be? You'd be worried if it was Kestrel!" Anxiety allowed an easy temper.

However the adoptive daughter dealt with it accordingly. She flicked her best friend on the head, and calmed the suddenly growling wolf hybrid.

"That is because Kess gets herself in trouble and stays there. If your brother got into trouble he'll shove his way out."

Despite the strange comparison the young teen couldn't help but smile again.

"Guess your right."

The younger Amun laughed and cocked her head. "Of course I'm right. I'm always right, haven't you learned that yet?"

This time she had her guest laughing as well.

"Here, I borrowed some cards from the vault so we can have a really good game of duel monsters." The orphan remembered, rummaging through his bag for the borrowed cards.

"Kay, I'll go tell Montague to set up a table." Talla said before walking out the door to find her head employee.

The man was finishing lecturing some new housekeeper about dusting when his youngest employer bounded up.

"Hey Montague,"

The balding man nodded in respect. "Yes Miss Amun?"

"Is Kess back yet?" Although she was happy that her sister had finally gone out of her own free will, the pressing need to talk to her was annoying.

The Latino worker shook his head, but a small smile graced his face. "No, shall I send her to you upon her arrival?"

The brunette thought for a moment, pausing. "No, but I would like to to give a message to Kaiba Corp for me..."

§

Sophie Cordeua had never thought herself to be a bad person. Sure, she wasn't a saint—the love of men and money told her that much. But she had never done anything considerably... bad in her lifetime either. At least not by her standards. Looking through the glass at her new creation however...

It was evil. Plain and simple. Hell, she didn't even believe in salvation, she believed in science. But this thing... it was evil. No way around it.

The genius bit her lip as she watched the subject writhe in agony under the influence of her machine. As a Nobel winner, she had always prided herself in her work on the human mind and more importantly, the manipulation of REM, the dream state. Now her work had brought about this wrongness.

It wasn't as though the woman had wanted to make it, she told her conscience. Cordeua had been sent a letter by **that man**. He had demanded this abolishment and forced her to follow his orders or die. Oh, how she regretted the ever getting involved withhim. It had been her vanity, she admitted. He had first offered her money for her research on the human mind. Now a clever woman was not deprived of suspicion from the considerably large 'donation'. But as a girl from the East Side, she had a strong clutch on the high life. The classican beauty had been wooed to the cash and when she had her break-through, nights had been spent waiting for her donor to come for some compensation. He never had. And she, stupidly, had allowed herself to fall into a false sense of freedom, forgetting about the large sum of money that had allowed her to thrive.

Five years had passed, and he finally appears again. The damned insignia belonged to no one else and Sophie had never spoken of her strange 'debt' to anyone else. It was indeed him, all doubt laid aside. He had come, gotten past her tight security without once being caught by a camera, and left a demand for all those years ago.

The blueprints to what the scientist was noting now, the device torturing a man in its confines. The man was, granted, a serial killer and rapist on death row so she shouldn't have felt so bad about using him but...

It was a sin. A black crime. An atrocity.

The dream specialist loved her creations. They were the babies of a childless woman. But this one... It had not been thought of by her. It did not lure out secrets from the confines of the human mind or heal years of emotional scarring. In fact, this device of hers did the opposite. Her subject right now, was re-living his own worst memories. And if he had an active subconscious, which translated into a creative mind, his own thoughts would twist to worse scenarios. This horror all because of one man.

Leon Tabat.

§

Skilled fingers lifted from the control panel to briefly rub their owner's throbbing temples. Irate beryl irises flashed to the digital clock on a shelf overhead.

_Four hours... I've been working at this for four hours and nothing!_

He clenched his teeth to suppress the rage bubbling up.

_Whoever this punk is, he is going to pay for trying to fuck with me._

The fury served as a kind of adrenaline ten times stronger than the black coffee by his wrist. With renewed steel, the brunette poured over his security cameras, looking for even a glimpse of the intruder.

It was the same thing in each of them. A calm place, a black-jacketed employee here or there. He clicked the screen through hours, scanning for any sign he had missed. Mentally, Kaiba processed everything he had done that day and anything he may have seen.

_The only places in the manor without a camera are my office, Mokuba's bedroom, and my bedroom. Either of us would have seen someone come through there. Let's see... I got up, took a shower, dressed, went down to breakfast with Mokuba, then went back into my office. Mokuba left for school and I got the... wait._

Seto leaned closer to the screen, deftly clicking to one of the many videos currently streaming on his screen. It was from the camera outside of the mansion, one positioned to the left to stare directly at the winding pathway a little beyond the first hedge. His swift mind tinkering, the CEO pressed the play button again and carefully analyzed the video.

It stayed the same, even as he dragged the cursor across its bar for several hours of footage. Nobody it seemed had walked there. Now as Kaiba Manor is very large, this normally would not have been a significant fact. But for now it was. The infamous businessman knew someone had walked down that path this morning. It was the way his brother went to the car for school everyday. But no crow-furrowed head appeared on the screen, even as the elder brother watched each hour manually, waiting as hours ticked by into nothingness. Still no change. The video caught only parchment white sidewalk and green fronds spinning around it.

The heartless young man sat back in his chair, a provocative smirk twisting upon his lips. Eyes shut for a moment, suppressing the sudden need to throttle someone. Throttling caused court cases. He did not want to go to court right now. There was an impressionable pause as the businessman gathered himself. Though when diamond-shattering orbs spread out again the deranged smirk remained on his face. And then it came.

The sharp, satire sound issued from his mouth and matched the blazing, dark look across his features. It was laughter, a harsh, barking mimickery that seemed to give the world the finger.

"Mr. Kaiba, is everything all right sir?" A shifty Rolland entered, dark glasses doing nothing to hide his apprehension.

The laughter died away. "We've been duped Rolland." Kaiba hissed, watching the video clip.

"Sir?" Had his young employee finally cracked under the pressure.

"There is a loop on Camera # 14. It is by the main pathway. Please have it removed."

Taking this as an invitation to continue with his life and job, Rolland quickly excused himself.

As his head employee vanished, a scowl appeared on Seto's mouth, looking more comfortable than the smirk had been.

_There is only one man who knew about that blind spot, the one place to feed a loop. But..._

_He's dead._

§

A/N: Sorry about the delay. I had some issues with writer's block.. I actually ended up writing this chapter at 2 in the morning. Oh, and if you don't know who Duncan Sheik is, you should listen to him sometime. Very mellow and not usually my style, but the guy is an A-class songwriter.

**The Submit Review Button turns to alcohol if not pushed enough. Let's avoid the rehab bills shall me? **


	13. Artemis Strings Pain

_Thank you for all you've done._

_Forgive all your mistakes_

_There's nothing I wouldn't do_

_To hear your voice again_

_Sometimes I wanna call you_

_But I know you won't be there_

_Oh, I'm sorry for blaming you_

_For everything I just couldn't do_

_And I've hurt myself by hurting you._

_--"Hurt" by Christina Aguilera _

§

Five days. Mokuba hadn't seen home in five days. The more surprising fact was that it didn't bother him as much as it should have. But one could not help but feel at a strange ease inside the Amun lifestyle. True, the boy had spent the night and played around days with his friend; but this was different. Mokuba always slept at home on weeknights—so that he could have breakfast with his brother. Now, he went to bed and went to school with the household. On the first day, the visitor was introduced into his new agenda.

6:45: Get up for school. Now school started at eight o'clock, and it was ten minutes away. At Kaiba Manor, he awoke at 7:30. This meant time to get dressed, and eat breakfast. However Talla was a twelve year old girl. She, he discovered, showered; carefully selected her wardrobe, and then had her adoptive mother come down and style her hair. After all that, the preteen would emerge from her room and eat. The younger Kaiba learned a new way to tease his best friend after that. Talla was vain in a way. Not conceited, as she did not mind people being prettier than her. But the brunette took it upon herself to present the best appearance.

Then there was breakfast. With the two males, it was an elegant, drawn-up affair of clean food and coffee. With the mistresses, it was a randomized, simple affair. Talla would call downstairs before her shower and order whatever she wanted to eat. It was at times, as simple as a rolled omelet or miso soup. Other times they were foreign dishes such as boysenberry pancakes or pineapple crepes. In those five days, Mokuba tasted more food then he had in his life. After all, top-notch restaurants did not sell simplified foods like chocolate chip waffles or peanut butter bagels; and the orphanage diet had consisted of rice and dried beans with the occasional noodle dish. Not only that but Kestrel was often missing for breakfast, and it wasn't the normal sit-down. While the coal-haired student was ready in enough time to enjoy a solo, albeit relaxed meal; the younger Amun raced down the stairs, grabbed a pre-wrapped box, and raced out the door.

School came and went, the same semi-monotony.( boredom was not a feeling someone near Talla could experience very strongly, if at all) They were picked up in a limo at the time it got out and taken back to Amun manor.

5:15: The pair arrived back at the house unless they chose to detour. A few days they stopped before going directly back to the mansion. Window shopping, playing at the local fountain with a tiger, hawk, and panda. Whenever they did manage to scoot back to her home, it was a crack-down on homework. The green-eyed girl could play, but when set to a task she completed it. Being smart naturally helped too. Afterwards the friends would play a game of duel monsters or entertain Dante. The big wolf-dog got a lot less scarier after a few nights. It was mutual too, as the fourth night the blue-eyed kid had woken up and pattered out of his room and found the creature laying quietly between the doors of his young mistress and master.

Dinner was as unscheduled as breakfast, but a little more oriented. Montague, the friendly and nearly paternal head staff-man, would come down to take both children's orders along with his employer's. He would also return when it was finished, and gather the woman from her office for the meal. On one occasion, the young CEO had been so caught up in her project that even Montague's persistence could not drive her from her office. Instead of doing as her friend did, and accepted this, the sister had gone up to her room and in her own fashion; convinced the blond to join them. Dinner with the Amun's was equivalent to breakfast with the Kaiba's. Three times, Seto had come by to see his brother. Each time he apologized for the wait, ensured that he was safe and it was merely a precaution, and simply enjoyed the banter of the meal. Once the younger Kaiba had caught his other brother roughly poking a fish as he muttered a thanks to the doctor. In her part, she laughed it off and commented softly that Mokuba had grown onto them all; and she would be sorry to see him go. Letting a soft 'hm' as a reply, Kestrel had probed a little farther by adding that Seto had almost become a part of their family too. The CEO had given her a scorning glance and muttered something his brother couldn't here.

In response, the caramel-eyed teen had pointed out that Dante _and_ Montague had stopped growling at him. The blue-eyed man just smirked.

That was life now, and somehow, Mokuba thought it all fit. The two families were like puzzle pieces—incomplete and completely contrasting, yet fitting perfectly into the holes of one another.

§

"Montague, is Kess around?" Talla popped up behind the balding man.

He put on a small frown. "No, Miss Talla. I'm afraid she is out."

The pretty twelve year old blinked at his tone. "Isn't that good? It's not like Kess goes out a lot."

"She's working out." The Latino clarified, clearing his throat.

The young brunette slapped her face. "Oi, what is she doing this time?"

At that point the visitor walked into the room. "Hey, what's wrong?"

"My sister's a workaholic." His friend put bluntly, snorting.

"Hello Master Mokuba," The dark-eyed employee greeted with crinkling eyes

The bush of black couldn't help but smile. He did like that title.

"Montague, I'm the one who is supposed to be inattentive." The youngest Amun chimed in with a fake pout.

"And you meet that standard perfectly." The head of staff joked deadpan. "Beyond that, Ms. Kestrel has gone out for a study with a young man by the name of Joey Wheeler."

The blue-eyed male coughed suddenly, pupils dilated in surprise.

"Is something the matter Master Mokuba?" The taller figure asked with faint concern.

"Joey Wheeler?!?"

The playful child blinked. "You know him?"

_Mutt._ His elder brother's voice played in his head. "Ah.. yeah. I didn't know your sister knew him though."

"Why, what is wrong with him?" A slight hostility had come into her tone.

The young duelist held his hands up. _Mutt. _"No, nothing like that! It's just... er... what exactly is she testing him for?"

Both eyes looked toward Montague.

"Ms. Amun mentioned something about metabolism rates versus food consumption."

"Why would she be doing that? Is this guy like an athlete or something?" His host directed the question at him now.

_Well he's not fat, but... _The co-owner of Kaiba Corp pondered for a moment. "Not really. He's skinny and stuff, but he's a duelist."

The adoptive daughter blinked. "A duelist?"

_Mutt._

§

Five days. Five days of intensive search in and everything seemed reluctant to unwind. There was only one lead he had right now, and that one had almost been more trouble than it was worth.

"Mr. Kaiba," Rolland had appeared at the door frame.

"What is it?" His employer growled in response, looking up from his laptop.

"The subject has been located."

The brunette smirked. Finally, all his hard work was about to pay off. _I finally get to show this punk the price for messing with me._

It had not been an easy few days. The corner camera was found and as he expected, was on a feed loop. The camera was taken down and swept for fingerprints. The grounds were searched for any sort of disturbance. Whoever did the handiwork had been neat, and had left neither of these. However a single hair was found. Determined, the businessman had run a DNA scan. The code was discovered, however not even Kaiba Corp had the resources to identify an X genetic code with a Y identity. However the people that did happened to be the Japanese Police Force. Who, as the CEO discovered, that shity computer security. So using their lists, he searched for the hair. The name was Ashemaru Fennir, a hired killer. Using his company's own GPS system, the teen had been sweeping the area for the man. And today, finally the results came back.

_Now that I've found the dog, I can force him to lead me to his master._

"Bring him in alive." Seto commanded, shutting down the laptop.

Rolland paused, shifting uncomfortably in his suit. "There's a problem sir."

Annoyed blue irises shifted over the worker. "What is it now?"

"Ashemaru Fennir is... already dead."

_Fuck..._

"How did this happen?" The teen's voice had dropped to a heated low.

The head of security would have gladly been _anywhere_ else than standing there right now.

"Our systems tracked the body to a street ally fifty miles from here. We can bring the body back for analysis if you wish..."

_Whoever is pulling the strings must have known that I would find his puppet, so he cut the ties. _

"Bring the body back, keep it in the underground lab."

"Sir! Would you like me to call a coroner to exam it?"

The handsome icicle was smirking again. "No, I already have someone in mind."Taking this as a leave and invitation to keep his job, the gray-haired man quickly exited the room.

The basement lab was quiet, its only occupant unmoving with a thoughtful, introverted gaze. It's sterile silver-sheeted walls hummed with the numerous computers and mainframes that lined it. The laptop was plugged into a large computer against the left wall. A metal table was ready, unknowing that it would soon hold the body of a criminal.

Finally, the duelist switched out his cell-phone, hitting the number six on his speed-dial.

The phone didn't ring, but went straight to the answering machine.

"Hello, this is the voice mail of Kestrel Amun. My apologies for being unable to reach the phone at this time, but please leave your name and number. I will return your call as soon as possible. Have a wonderful day."

Beep.

He hung up the line, now pissed and dialing the number to Mikagi Corp.

This time the phone rang, twice.

"Susan of Mikagi Corp speaking, how may I be of service to you?"

"This is Seto Kaiba. I need to speak to Kestrel Amun." His tone was dripping with annoyance and retribution.

He managed to scare the girl on the other line as she stuttered. "I a—am sorry... Mr. Kaiba, bu—but Ms. Amun is currently out."

The world hated him.

But that was okay, he hated the world.

Not bothering to apologize, the infamous man hung up the phone.

_Damn woman, where the hell are you?_

_§_

"So what is it you wanted me to do exactly?" Joey asked, scratching his sandy hair.

The blond across from him winked. "Just... go about your normal day and pretend I'm not here, okay."

The teen shrugged. "Alright, what is this for though?"

She suppressed a sigh. "I am studying your food consumption versus metabolic activity on a daily basis.

The cutely confused look in his hazel eyes made Kestrel give a small laugh.

"What's so funny?" The duelist blinked, letting it go that he had no idea what she was doing this for.

"Your eyes they look... like a puppy's." The medic replied with a stifled chuckle.

_Mutt._

"Hey, I am not a dog!" Wheeler pouted.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to offend you." The elder Amun was honest as she gave a small smile.

The good-natured youth simply shrugged. "T's okay. I guess I just kinda have a sore spot for being called a dog."

_All thanks to that greedy pretty boy..._

"Oh, I'll remember that." The businesswoman promised as they crossed the street.

"Don't worry about it... So, you just want to follow me on my everyday schedule right?"

The CEO of Mikagi Corp nodded encouragingly. "Right, just pretend I'm not here."

Her subject snorted. "Well, didn't I promise I'd teach you how to have fun? You can't really learn if you're sitting in the back corner by yourself. Come on, lighten up!"

Amber eyes blinked, before a wide upturn spread across her full lips.

"Alright."

The underdog winked and gave her thumbs up. "Then we're all set to go to the game shop!"

Kestrel stopped for a moment. "Game shop?"

"Yeah, gramp's owns it. It has the best cards in town."

The pretty teen didn't move. "Cards?"

"You know, for duel monsters!" The street-rat added, giving her a questioning look.

"Wait, you do know what duel monsters is, don't you?" He pointed a finger at her seriously.

The woman shook her head. "No I've never heard of it."

Joey had an aneurysm. "What?!? You've never heard of—How can you have never heard of it? What have you done to live all these years?!?"

_Is it really that big of a deal? _Amun wondered to herself as she took a hesitant step back.

However, a flaming mutt caught her. "Come on! We're going to gramp's shop so he can teach you duel monsters!"

"Okay..." She added, though he didn't seem to need her acceptance as he grabbed her wrist and dragged her off toward the store.

§

Seto Kaiba was _pissed_. Not like, 'wow, today sucks' either; it was 'I am going to choke the life out of the next person who makes eye contact with me.' Unable to reach the one person he trusted with the dissection of his only lead, lacking in sleep, and frustrated to no end; he had simply walked out of Kaiba Corp. His feet led the way mindlessly, homicidal gleam in his eyes kept others away, and mind ran endlessly.

_I have to end this soon! _

_Why is that?_

_Because it is distorting my life. Mokuba can't sleep at our house because someone shot him! And then that note..._

_You're frightened._

An inner scoff broke into the argument. _Of what?_

_That it may really be **him** again. _

_...That is insane. He died. People don't come back from the dead._

_If you call that illogical, than answer this. How many people know about what he did?_

_It doesn't matter. So some punk dug up some information, who cares. I'll find him and make him pay!_

_...If anyone could have escaped death, it would have been him._

_Shut up. You know what it truly crazy? Having an argument with yourself!_

The stoic teen shut out the inner voice in his head that had a suspiciously familiar tone. Only then did he take notice in his surroundings, and thus hide a groan.

His feet had led him straight to an overly friendly little shop. The older Kaiba almost turned away, disowning it; when a horribly innocent face happened to peer out of the window.

"Kaiba!" Yugi Muto shouted from his window in surprise.

Hiding a wince, the CEO glared up at his rival.

Of course, the top duelist was too used to the painful-death look to be intimidated. Instead, he called back out to the other man.

"Hang on a sec, I'll be right down!"

The blue-eyed brunette almost turned and walked away. However then he would have to explain why his unconscious wandering had led him to Yugi's doorstep. Rather look irate and planned then thoughtless and vulnerable. So, with a deepening scowl, the infamous businessman walked toward the game shop door. He saw two people—one unhappily, one unexpectedly. And that, as they say, broke the camel's back.

§

Kestrel was sitting across from her new friend. An intricate web of cards lay between them, bright colors and snarling monster faces. Joey in turned out, was a surprisingly adept to teaching. While she was still flawed, unsure on moves, and not strategizing anything well, the honey-haired individual was learning. However her current choice between two cards was interrupted by an aura that singed the back of her neck. Being a healer for so long, the young woman had acquired a certain feel for people; and she was sure whoever entered the room was hellbent. However when her bird-like eyes laid upon him, they widened slightly in surprise.

"Seto?"

The tall figure stormed over to the table, completely ignoring the other man with his mouth open.

"What the hell are you doing here with the mutt? And why didn't you answer your phone?" The rant began.

While most people would have been shaking in their clothes by now, the redound doctor dealt with it accordingly. After all, she had been with pregnant woman crazed by hormones into truly frightening heights. Kaiba couldn't compare with that, no matter how many painful deaths his eyes conveyed with a cold, threatening tone.

"You know Joey?" Amun asked, her voice guarding but not offensive.

"Rich boy, what are you doing down here?" The said person growled.

"Shut up mutt." Blue eyes favored him with a 'fuck you' glare.

"He's right Kaiba. What are you doing here?" Yugi stepped in suddenly, cautious but not aggressive.

Ignoring the spiky-haired host, he grabbed the woman's arm, pulling her to her feet before releasing it. The muscle tensed underneath his touch.

"You, come with me." The human ice cube commanded, turning his back on her.

Unfortunately, he had forgotten one tiny piece of information about the tawny-haired girl in his rage. Kestrel Amun _hated_, above all things, to be controlled, caged.

A definite frown lined her forehead and the bright eyes narrowed in anger. Her posture grew defiant behind his back.

"Forget it." There were flames licking her tongue.

The CEO stiffened, turning his head to an angle where one eye pierced out at her.

"I don't have time for your games."

Light hair was brushed out of an eye, leaving both orbs to glare openly at him.

"Kaiba, listen to this and then leave. You do not own me. I can do what I want, when I want, although you might not like it. So come off your fucking throne, and leave."

It was the first time he had ever heard her cuss. The owner of Mikagi Corp was truly infuriated by something. So with a scowl, the intruder turned back around with the last word.

"People like you are so pathetic."

The moment his white-clad frame was out the door the adoptive mother sat down heavily, simmering.

The other two boys in the room were nearly afraid to move.

Wheeler broke the tension first, scratching his nose in fake ease. "Wow, and I thought I was going to be the one to get into a fight with pretty boy."

Yugi input. "I wonder what's going on with him though. Kaiba was acting a little strange."

Amun looked down.

Guilt is the monster that is born from the good in the world, rather than the cruel.

§

The anger was slow to walk itself off as the young man continued. What had happened back there he wasn't sure. All his resentment outpouring from missing his brother, having this aggravating search, and some strange animal that wound in his chest the moment he laid eyes on Kestrel and Joey.

_Kestrel with Joey, _commented the sly voice in his head.

Cursing, Kaiba stopped and collected himself again. Only someone who knew him well could tell the careful facade had been cracked, but he knew it. Gathering and bottling his emotions once more, the raka-haired man whipped out his cell phone to call for a limo.

"Hello Seto," A voice halted his fingers, poised in the same position.

It was a deep baritone, jagged but unhalting. Dominative, controlling, pinched and currently it rung with a smirk.

Long bangs hid the widened irises as the trench-coat wearing individual kept perfectly still.

"Come now Seto..." Footsteps were approaching, mocking him. "Is that anyway to greet your father after so long?"

Standing there defying death, was Gozobora Kaiba.

Only someone with as tight of control as the younger man could have dealt with this situation.

"You're dead."

Gozobora just laughed. He looked younger than he should. Even before his death, the man had been forty-two. The figure with him was a little older than himself, somewhere in the mid-twenties or early thirties.

"Did you really think you'd kill me, brat? Perhaps you're more foolish than I imagined."

It seemed the world had been sucked off color, as large gray clouds overcast. The ally street around them was dull and worn. Desolate. Secluded. Alone.

"As though I'd believe this. You're just some cheap trick." The current CEO frowned back.

However his adoptive father didn't loose the commanding smirk.

"Really? Then who do you think paid Fennir to shot the kid?"

Cold blue eyes narrowed, threatening. "You leave Mokuba out of this, whoever you are."

The Kaiba patriarch scoffed. "Still don't believe me? You always were an atheist, _Seto._ Well then, this should clear things up."

His bulk was covered by a fashionable business suit of onyx coloring. From its tailored pocket, the nightmare pulled out a thin scrap of paper the size of a card. Thunder rolled in the distance as if to add effect to the impact of the scene. The heir was robbed of speech for a moment, eyes seeing the same little coloring of the Blue Eyes White Dragon from all those years ago. The little paper his younger brother had made him as a sign of hope.

"I can see you're coming around." Gozobora stuffed the paper back into his coat pocket.

"What the fuck do you want?" The mask was slipping again, falling with the slow-coming rain.

"Language Seto." The older businessman retributed with malevolence.

"However to answer the question, I want what is mine. You brat, stole my company. Now I'm here to reclaim it. I was planning to kill you, but since the work you have been done actually hasn't been that bad; I'll let you live for now."

The words were beating into the duelist's heart, rhythm and sync with his soul.

"However, if you try to stop me from taking back what's mine; I will kill you."

Gozobora waved his fingers to signal three large men wearing identical sneers and carrying bats.

"Take this as a warning."

§

Inwardly cursing at guilt, a pretty businesswoman drove down the rainy streets toward Kaiba Corp.

_Seto, you arrogant bastard, you had better be alright._

She had been truly furious with the other company owner. The man had hit all her trump cards—attacking friend and freedom, as Montague once put it. However after converting back to French, the medic had said goodbye to Yugi and Joey, and gone out to find the frozen-hearted young man. She was mad, not unreasonable.

Then there was this strange eclipse to her vision. Kestrel was not a very spiritual person, a trait quoted by her history. Her view of fate was like that of a puppeteer. One only needed to cut the strings to be freed. However, an ominous... _shift_ was simply fingering her. It wasn't something tangible, but rather there—an annoyance and a worry.

Due to the now down pouring rain and a frazzled head, the female CEO almost missed the figure in the rain. But a flash of white caught her observant eyes, followed by a familiar mop of brown hair.

_Please, no..._

The car pulled to a screeching stop, turning completely horizontal at the force. Before the vehicle completely halted, her feet were on the slushy ground, running quickly to the unmistakable person slumping toward his office.

"Seto!" The oldest Amun felt all anger leave her, concern too strong. The professional mind-click was turning on, leaving a cool face.

His entire form was leaning and soaked. The once colorless trench-coat was splattered with the burgundy liquid a doctor sees too many times. An angry bruise patched on one cheek, and and several cuts lined his scalp, washed clean by the rain. But it was the leg her eyes noticed first. It had a strong limp, resulted from the ankle bone actually protruding. Wary cerulean depths met her assessing gaze.

"What do you want?" Kaiba growled at her through clenched teeth.

Unfathomable features met him. "To help."

The world faded into wonderful, aching, black.

§

A/N: This one was longer than I usually do, but I really wanted to end here because the next chapter is more about their past.

**Kaiba does a strip tease for anyone who reviews;-)**


	14. Interaction

_ Take off your halo, take off your golden crown  
The spotlight's off, the shades are down  
Where are your friends now, they're ghosts in a windowpane  
_

_ Sometimes it's hard to stay the same._

_We can live lifetimes in a single day  
No matter what you do, I love you anyway  
You say if you're lost inside; well I get lonely too  
Even in the worst of times, I give my best to you._

_I dreamed I was swimming, fighting the undertow_

_ Drifting in circles, no place to go_

_ And when I woke up, I was wringing wet  
So much stronger than before _

_We can live lifetimes in a single day_

_ No matter what you do, I love you anyway  
You say if you're lost inside; well I get lonely too  
Even in the worst of times, I give my best to you._

_The words escape  
The silence made  
The looks betray  
I'm not afraid _

_We can live lifetimes in a single day  
No matter what you do, I love you anyways  
You say if you're lost inside; well I get lonely too  
Even in the worst ot times, I give my best to you_

_--'Lifetimes' by Sheryl Crow_

§

_The first one came in sneering and soon found himself meeting dirt. After all, despite what the mutt said he was more than a pretty boy with pianist fingers. Life at the orphanage and Gozobora had taught him how to fight. Five years of self-defense classes probably helped too; with the fact that his genes gave him a naturally lean and tall frame. In all truth—Seto Kaiba would have made a mean fighting opponent for the street rat._

_Blinking in surprise, the other two paused long enough for their boss to make a gloating exit. By then, they had regathered their wits and attacked him together. He managed to dodge the first assault by quickly back-stepping the faster attacker and using his fist to guide the second toward a collision. However even with all his pride, the CEO wasn't a fool. He could defend himself to a limit, and then drag himself home and patch up. All he wanted was to take as much out of these sons-of-a-gun as he could before that time._

_The second time they charged, a club hit his ribs and an audible crack was heard as he slid standing along the gravel. Refusing to bend, the brunette only scowled at the onslaught of pain while the gorilla-looking man raised his club to hit his body clumsily several times. Once in the head, once on the hip, and one lazy shot to the leg. That was until the infamous blue-eyed prodigy had dealt a roundhouse to his jaw. Ape-man went down, however Blondie over there was almost growling with anger. Seto just managed to bring his fists down to guard as he was met with a brutal series of powerful club-strikes. It wasn't long until bone cracked and the human icicle had to grit his teeth against the damage his own nervous system was causing. The loud sensors reading PAIN had to be ignored. He would not be dominated. Catching an opening with narrowed eyes, the duelist jabbed his fingers into the tender Adam's apple of the other man. He abruptly halted the attack to stutter and choke, waving blindly. He smirked lightly, wiping away the thin trickle of blood exerting from his mouth._

_However monkey-man was back up and raging as ever. Pivoting his ankle, Seto blocked his opponent's shot just in time to avoid a derailing blow. Using the motion, he swung a leg around to smack hard into the other man's face again. A resounding thump told the tale of a broken nose. Blood was spattering everywhere, mingling with the rain that had come out unnoticed. One hand on his own, the shaggy-haired creature waited for his fairer, but no less ugly, partner to stand back up again. A vicious tag-team attack was coming. They proved to be more intelligent then he had originally thought. Underestimating them had caused Kaiba a great deal of suffering. _

_Waiting for the repeated double-charge, the tall figure raised his two-sided guard. Ape-man attacked first and with enough brute force that Seto had to use both hands to block or face fatal damage. At that moment, the golden-haired thug had raced behind him and beat his left ankle two crippling blows with his staff. The elder Kaiba knew he was in trouble when his mobility was limited. His speed had been somewhat of an edge, so they had eliminated it. Leering again, the muscled pair loomed over him with dark intent in their eyes as they cradled their blunt weapons. The man could only steel his body not to move under the harsh beating that brought up the sickening sound of bone crackling to powder and muscles wrenching in tightness. His silence was the most stunning of all, letting the fuck you glare speak for him._

**_Hey, but maybe this all is all a dream? After all, my body no longer hurts. That has to be a good sign, right? And this light... wait, the light?_**

§

Angsty, blue eyes opened at the prevalence of dim, warming light coming from a window at the far side of the room. For a passing moment, they just stared with unbridled disorientation.

"How are you feeling?"

Those words brought everything crashing back down like a shipwreck, forcing the teen to instinctively jolt his body into sitting position. While he felt only a small jab of pain, he instantly became aware of the bandages wrapping his form. And the fact that the room he was in was not only unfamiliar, but smelled of some unknown, calming essence.

"What happened?" Kaiba's natural defenses shot up. However they lowered when he recognized the speaker.

She had her back turned to him, the tawny hair gliding gracefully down her back in its tie. It stood out against the green shirt she was wearing with black pants, but somehow something was calming about seeing her. It was familiar, and he could deal with that. Realizing his own thoughts, the man frowned.

_Since when is she a sign of familiarity?_

"You passed out and I brought you here to patch you up. You had no serious wounds; just two broken ribs, a fractured ankle, minor head injury, and several lacerations." Her voice had gained a strange distance that he was unacquainted with hearing, except on the terrible night Mokuba had been shot.

"Where is here?" The brunette asked, choosing to ignore her behavior. She still hadn't looked at him, to busy with whatever she was fixing on the table.

"My private study. I use it for special cases and research. It was closer than taking you back to Kaiba Manor or the hospital." That damned voice again, and why wasn't she looking at him?

Preparing himself to demand answers, the CEO was surprised when she suddenly turned around, a steaming mug in one hand. The patient carefully analyzed her face. It was polite, with a faint smile that communications classes teaches you to always wear. Honey hued eyes were not filled with light this time, but hidden somewhere deep. Annoyed at being unable to read her, the genius decided to take out his frustrations on something else. With a lifted eyebrow, he glared at the cup she was offering.

"What the hell is that?"

"Tea." No witty remark, no exasperated sigh and comment on his lack of manners, no faint smile at his demeanor. Had someone killed the woman he knew and replaced her with a robot?

When her guest still did not accept the cup, the doctor laid it on the end-table by his bedside.

"It will help you heal."

Seto lost his patience. He stared up at her face. "What is wrong with you?"

If he had expected a sudden outburst and emotional bearing of her life and soul, he would have been surprised. Instead, her eyes turned to look him over, just as blank.

"I am fine, thank you for your concern though." Kestrel was too mannerly. This was how she had acted the first day they had met... before loosing her temper and yelling at him, that is. A polite, firm, distance; it was unsuited for her playful features. Almost like a colorful canvas that had been painted over with white.

Instead of backing down or being deceived as most people would have, the duelist saw right through her act.

_I've been forced to spend so much time with the idiot that she can't fool me that easily. What is this, a joke?_

"Don't lie. You're not very good at it." The elder Kaiba said with his own cold monotone.

Amun didn't even stiffen under the remark or punishing glare.

"My apologies Kaiba." The female CEO seemed just as determined to keep the mask on as he was to take it off. It had become a challenge, a puzzle.

"I don't have time for your sympathies. Just stop acting weird." The businessman snapped.

The pretty creature had been walking toward the door. At his demand, her fingertips had paused on the knob. In a flash, she veered around at him, with a bright grin pasted on her face.

"As you wish, Kaiba. Now please, rest for now and drink your tea. You should be able to move freely tomorrow."

As the door shut at her exit, the frigid heartthrob realized that somehow, he had lost.

§

"...And my Chaos Apple wipes out your Marie the Fallen One for the game!" Mokuba exclaimed, happy to have won another round.

Talla just sighed good-natured. "Okay, okay; we'll go to the shops today. But I swear, the day I beat you we are spending five days at the park."

Her friend just smirked, very Kaiba-like. The sound of boots clicking on the hardwood floor grabbed their attention then.

"Oh, hey Kess!" The forest-eyed creature waved happily at her adoptive mother. "Mokuba and I are going to a gaming shop. We'll be back for dinner, kay?"

The blond turned, smiling at the pair. "Have fun."

The boy beamed back. "Thanks! Come on Talla let's—Talla?"

The girl was now creeping toward her sister's retreating footsteps, a suspicious look on her face.

"Did you notice that?"

The black-haired child blinked. "Notice what?"

Hazel green eyes narrowed in wariness. "Kess... she was off."

The younger Kaiba stepped forward, looking uneasy. "Ah, are you sure you didn't imagine it?"

The young mistress gave with a withering glance back. "Yes I am sure. Her smile... it was so _big_."

The teen folded his arms. "And did smiling too large become a crime under Queen Amun's rule?

She kicked his shin without much force, only enough to make his taller form buckle down in surprise and pain.

"TALLA!"

Said individual nodded, half to herself. "Yes something is up with her."

"Grand." The co-owner of Kaiba Corp grunted with some sulkiness at the physical misconduct.

Noticing this, the brunette rolled her eyes. "You're a guy; suck it up."

"I am fine." The younger brother did his best imitation of his elder's fear-invoking tone.

Miss ADD had moved on again, however. "Hm, maybe your brother and talk some sense out of her if he comes tonight."

Mokuba instantly brightened at the prospect. "Yeah, it'd be nice to see Seto."

§

"Nosotros miro en ti libro..." The rapid words kept pouring into the phone, being heard by an intelligent ear. However the other half of her could not be farther away.

_Was I right in not telling him?_

The image of his smiling face came to mind, and it was hard to say no. But then...

_Kaiba is his brother... surely he'd want Mokuba to know what happened just as much as Mokuba would want to know._

Some inner persona laughed at her even as she gave a reply.

"Miraste en el periodista por..."

_Him, want someone to know he was weak? Please, the guy would never want you to tell his brother; he's too proud and protective._

It was truly amazing. Her professional side controlled her features and her tongue as her inner thoughts trickled about oblivious. It was almost as though two souls inhabited one body—an ineffaceable, polite, worker of medicine versus a soulful; colorful entity.

_Is it that or do you just not want to tell the kid why his brother was beaten up in the first place? _A sly voice snickered through the barriers of her mind. It was all she could do to repress a very impolite French phrase from the current dialect. However with the thought, another sharp jab of guilt bled out her stomach again. After all, the man would never have been harmed if she hadn't been so stubborn, if she had only shut up and gone with him to who-knows-where. Then no one would have been dragged back to her study, hidden from the two children and bandaged up in secret.

_I think this is what he wants._ Amun tried to convince herself while thoughtless words kept spilling from her tongue.

_I hope this is what he wants, after all I owe him now. _While dragging the taller man's frame into her house and patching it up, the medic had something to keep her mind off the impending punches of remorse she knew was coming. Upon situating her patient into bed, she stayed watch over him while staving off the worst part with the professional front. However now, with nothing left to entertain her mind except a very dull phone call, the guilt retributed itself in full force. The elder sister came back to herself as she said a friendly goodbye and hung up the phone. A headache was coming, and she resisted the temptation to rub her forehead.

_I should go check back on him. _The head of Mikagi Corp decided, quickly making her ways down the hall into her own personal office.

The room was lined with herbs and white bottles, hand-labeled in sprawled, elegant handwriting. Lavender and jasmine incense was burning lowly from its wick on the far end, perfuming the air in a calming scent. The small, make-shift bed had been pulled out and the proud CEO was lying on it, asleep due to the drug she had slipped into his tea and the warm, easing of the atmosphere. Careful to stay quiet, the amber-eyed woman stepped toward her patient's bedside. She had never seen him sleeping before, her mind hazily recalled.

His body wrapped in bandages and a sheet, the duelist's brown hair fell casually into his closed eyes. His thin, well-shaped lips were lined shut as air slipped rhythmically in and out his nostrils. Both arms lay by his head and neck, warding off some unknown attack.

"Seto," Kestrel whispered, pulling up the stool to sit by his bedside just as she had done all last night.

"Are you still against the world, even in your dreams?" The incense must be affecting her, the medic knew, as her eyes suddenly felt like iron. Allowing the carefully tailored smile to slip off her face, the caramel-haired woman allowed weariness and remorse play a bittersweet harmony on her visage.

The boy was strangely captivating, in all his frigid beauty.

_He's like the winter. _

However, a sudden movement stirred her from the observation. The owner of Kaiba Corp had scrunched his face in pain, tightening his already battered muscles and straightening his tall frame. Moving instinctively, Amun placed a hand on this side of his face. Her slender fingers curved along his strong jaw almost tenderly as worried, bird-like irises looked his form over, watching as he stilled again. She didn't move her hand for fear that releasing him would cause another nightmare.

"Seto, you worry me so much." The girl's voice was the lowest decibel.

"I don't know if I am ever really helping you. You are in so much pain." He shivered, unconsciously under the warmth of her hand as fingertips began to move in T-circles around his jaw and through his hair.

"But for right now, you're alright. So just... be safe." _With me... I'll heal you. _The oldest Amun thought privately, no longer having the energy to say her thoughts aloud.

The businesswoman was fighting it, she really was. But the sun was so gentle, its sienna arms embracing her in warmth and the smell that filled the air was so inviting. And the boy that lay in the bed could not be left, for some evil even now claimed his mind.

Somehow, Kestrel found her eyes closed. Her body was slumped over her patient's bedside, gold-tainted hair mingling with his hands.

§

_"I want to remind you what I do to failures here, Seto." Gozobora's commanding, cruel voice whipped into his core. His twelve year old self body attempted to tremble, but he mastered it._

_"I am sorry for failing you sir." The child's tone was flat, devoid as the hollow blue eyes._

_"If you're not going to be the best, go back to the orphanage. Or else, get your act together." His stepfather continued to reprimand, staff already in hand._

_The boy knew that staff well. Its stem was made of light marble, cut and polished black and very dense. The head was a molded lion of steel, overlaid with gold. He still had scars from the last time it had banged against his lean frame. Even as fear rose up in his throat like bile, his visage remained featureless. Still a child, the orphan knew that crying would only give this man what he wanted. He would not bow to this bastard, no matter what it took._

_The staff descended on his back, slicing open a spot below the shoulder-blades with the lion's hooked mouth. Again and again it fell, until blood was a river that flowed to the floor in a small lake by his feet. The brown-haired child bit his tongue to keep from screaming, clenching his knuckles white against the onslaught._

_**I will not scream. I am stronger than this. I will beat him.**_

_It came until a haziness spread into his vision and the older brother found himself fighting to stand just as much as he struggled to withhold his cries. His body was at its breaking point, too young to withstand blood loss and continual beating. He was sure one of his ribs had already cracked. _

_**He must have hit a nerve. ** The future heir thought dully as the pain seemed to recede. _

_**Wait, is it getting brighter out? **Indeed, the small, underground room was lighting warmly and a strangely soothing smell was in the air..._

§

The first thing Kaiba noticed was the strange weight on his arm and chest. Cerulean eyes blinked away the dizziness of sleep and focused on the strange shape partially-atop of him. A sharp intake of breath was heard as it took all the infamous bachelor's steel control to not shout out in shock.

Kestrel was kneeling against the short bed in her sleep. Both her arms were laying softly out, one of them fingering his cheek. Her head rested on his chest, hair shimmering like bronze in the darkened room. Bright eyes were shut, showing off the row of dark, curving lashes instead.

Now the man felt at conflict. This woman had(though he would rather shove a stick up his ass than admit it) now saved both him and Mokuba. She was the closest thing the cold-hearted teen ever had to a friend. (Yugi and his little gang didn't count. Yugi was a rival.) However, some strange sensation was crawling throughout his body, heating it unnaturally. He needed to get her off him, now.

So without the normal roughness, the duelist sat up slightly, using one had to shake the other person's shoulder.

"Kestrel."

At the sound of the name, her eyes opened lazily. In the falling light, they seemed to glow with some unknown life, even in their disoriented state.

"Kestrel you're on me." Curiosity, and a lingering annoyance piqued his voice, but it wasn't the fury that would have occurred had any other person done this.

It was as if lightening had tried to smite her. The slender figure yanked herself off the bed so hard she tumbled back, her feet tingling from sleep.

Seto cocked an eyebrow to her, but to his surprise she didn't reply to it. Instead, the medic did something very unlike herself. Hand running through her hair, she babbled."Haha, sorry about that! It was the incense you know, putting me to sleep. I have been working on this case study and haven't slept in a while too. A—anyways, sorry again! I'll go check on dinner, so just rest!"

Before the duelist could even say a word, she had spit the entire story out and shut the door.

_That, _Seto Kaiba decided, _was strange._

What was more strange however, was the strange hollowness he felt as she left, taking the heated feeling with her.

§

A/N: Hehe, that was a fun chapter to write!! Some angst and humor... next one is probably going to be darker, so be forewarned! Oh, and does anyone have any song requests?

**Pressing the Submit Review Button makes a stock in Kaiba Corp go up. Make Seto happy and press the button!**


	15. Splintering Glass

_Because of you_

_I never stray too far from the sidewalk_

_Because of you_

_I learned to play on the safe side so I don't get hurt_

_Because of you_

_I find it hard to trust not only me, but everyone around me_

_Because of you_

_I am afraid_

_I lose my way  
And it's not too long before you point it out  
I cannot cry  
Because I know that's weakness in your eyes  
I'm forced to fake  
A smile, a laugh everyday of my life  
My heart can't possibly break  
When it wasn't even whole to start with_

_Because of you  
I never stray too far from the sidewalk  
Because of you  
I learned to play on the safe side so I don't get hurt  
Because of you  
I find it hard to trust not only me, but everyone around me  
Because of you  
I am afraid _

_-'Because of You' by Kelly Clarkson_

§

When Seto Kaiba returned to his office that evening, two things happened. The first was that he realized that neither Mokuba nor Talla knew of his happenings with Gozobora. The second, was a remembrance of why he rarely, if ever, took off work.

_It's like dreams—the more you work on it, the bigger it becomes. _

He noted as his blue gaze fixated on the large stack of papers from absence during the hunt for...

_Backspace, I'm not thinking about that now. I have work to do._

In fact, the only thing the young boy had done with the sustained truth of his adoptive father's return was ask for his brother's continued stay with the Amun's.

_Cautious, worried, knowing eyes stared him down. "You should stay too."_

The infamous CEO gritted his teeth at the recent memory. It had been spoken by the owner of those amber eyes after dinner a few hours ago.

_His cold, unaffected aura tweaked in incredibility. "I have a company to run."_

_Her features kept that content mask carefully glued down. "I understand. Well then, take care."_

Mindlessly, the cocky brunette sifted through various letters, signing unimportant documents here and there. Clenching his pen, the stoic man narrowed his eyes.

_I don't have time to think about the depths of her naivety. _The inner voice lectured, focusing again on the black and white lines of print.

An invitation to the next bachelor party, some meeting scheduled for the week, one patron letter...

And then a small, little slip in sprawling purple pen; informally written to him.

Pausing, the elder brother thinned his lips as he deciphered the concise message on the paper. Turning it over, he found out that it had been sitting on his desk for several days. A smirk tugged its way onto his face.

_Kaiba,_

_You're not very nice and I don't like you that much; but Mokuba is really worried about you so you should stay out of trouble and just come take him home soon. You better not get hurt jerk, or else I'll set Dante on you._

_--Talla _

If only the little girl had known just what would befall the tall teen days after her letter had been abandoned on the desk. Oh, the irony of it all.

_She's not stupid. _The game designer admitted without much grudge and still a smirk. He placed the letter back on the silver of his desk. Elegant fingers smoothed over the slip's creases and smudges. Slowly, he placed it in a small, pexiglas, box. The only other item in the locked box, which opened with his golden locket, was another slit of paper. This one was a handful of cards, crudely drawn. Without looking, he knew that the blue-eyes sketch would be missing. Fishing in his pocket, the businessman pulled out a crinkled, damp piece. Carefully smoothening it without tearing, the final card drawing was placed inside the box with the letter. Without further ceremony, the duelist snapped the lid shut and used his necklace to re-lock it. No one would ever suspect the razor of a man to have a box of sentimentality.

The orphaned teen swiveled back around on his chair, turning back to sorting through the small mountain of paperwork from five days of neglect. Any truly important stuff the secretary would take care of, but that didn't lessen the degree. As half his ego was upon the print, the rest was experiencing a smile-frown of insecurity, berate, and a little lingering victory.

_How on earth did that sprite of a girl worm so close to me?_

§

Kestrel removed her gloves, disposing of them in the most recycle bin. As the din of nurses and machinery lingered in the background, slender digits came up in an attempt to roll out the growing headache. However, it was more persistent than most and the day still had a long stretch. It was one of the few days the medic worked on field duty. Normally, she enjoyed these days when the office was miles away and her focus was entirely on saving people. Today, though, there was a severe lack of enthusiasm, despite the woman's good attempt to hide it.

"Ms. Amun," A fellow pediatrician approached, her dark hair swinging in its strict up-do.

"Ah Karina," The tawny-haired individual greeted, putting her hands down and tactfully placing a smile on her face.

The other woman's smile faltered into a look of skepticism. "Are you feeling alright Ms. Amun?"

With a laugh, the businesswoman waved it away. "Of course, and didn't I tell you to call me Kestrel? We are both certified medics, after all."

Karina raised one eyebrow. "Are you just trying to make me feel good by putting me in the same league as you or are you also a nun?"

The pretty teen smiled politely. "Was there something you needed to talk to me about Karina?"

Coal eyes blinked. "Oh yes, we need you on Level 5. The brother of one of our cancer patients is pacing around the pediatric ward. He's young and not causing any harm, but with all the disease going around I wouldn't want him to contract anything. However, the boy is insistent that his brother will be coming soon. You have always had a way with children, so I thought maybe you could talk to him."

If anyone thought is was odd for a subordinate to be suggesting something to her employer, no one said it aloud. In fact, the young CEO broke into a truer, smaller smile.

"Of course... Oh and Karina,"

The pediatrician paused in her step to turn back.

"I think they might need your skills on Level 3. Go see to it for me please."

The dark-haired woman nodded sternly. "I'll do that."

They parted ways and the adoptive mother allowed her thoughts to trail as she walked.

_Seto should have made a full recovery by today. If I get time tonight at dinner, I should check up on him though. He got beaten up pretty badly; but I doubt the man feels like spilling his soul right now. _

A twisted grin made its way across her visage at the thought of her frigid friend teary-eyed and sobbing. About the same chance as she did of getting a good night's sleep.

_There was something within her that was suddenly willing to cave when she was with him... As if she could lay down and be weak in his presence and it was all right. He had been so... soothing._

Reaching the hallway, the elder sister shook the thoughts away. After all, what was relaxing in the uptight, rigid company owner?

Any other contemplation was left for later, as the pacing little body came into view at the next turn.

§

"I lay the magic card, Coming of the Storm. Now all your magic cards are removed from play." Mokuba stated simply as he placed his own card onto the desk.

Without a complaint, his opponent gathered up her own cards.

"What's up Talla? You're playing off today." The boy commented easily, blue eyes watching her.

Without concern, the girl threw down another card. "I lay Guardian Angel down and activate her special ability. Now all of your monsters have to attack her card first... Don't you think our siblings are hiding something from us?"

Shuffling through his deck, the charcoal-haired boy slipped a card from his hand onto the field. "I special summon Serpent's Tale onto the field. This means you have one turn to defend from it... What do you mean?"

The cute preteen flipped a spell card over. "I use polymerization to fuse my Marie the Fallen One with a Blue Eyes from my hand... I mean, your brother had that weird look on his face all through dinner and Kess wouldn't meet his eyes. Didn't you notice anything?"

The youngest Kaiba narrowed his eyes to combat the powerful creature now on the field. "Hm, well then I'll combine my Serpent's Tale with Devil's Dice. That means it all depends on a roll... I guess your right, but we shouldn't butt into all of their problems."

The cocoa-haired girl snorted. "Then I'm a noisy brat, so what? Kess is to damn good at keeping secrets and they are usually things that I ought to know... Damn, you win the dice roll."

"You're forgetting your rules." The cerulean-eyed child corrected smoothly. "It's a 3-5 split so we both have another chance... Don't you trust your sister though?"

The adoptive daughter bit her tongue in frustration. "I can't move my fusion creature; its protecting my Dragon Master and Gemini Elf... I love my sister, however she tends to be stupidly self-sacrificing and feels the need to protect me from anything. The woman could have a gun pointed at her and she would still call me up and tell me that everything is fine as long as I stay inside the house."

The more experienced duelist activated his dice card again. "4-6, This time I win the roll... Are you sure whatever is going on is that big of a deal?"

The slender little sprite laid down a card. "I use de-fusion to separate my monster. Now your attack only wipes out my Marie the Fallen One... It has to do with both our siblings, isn't that big enough?"

"Hm, you still lost enough life points to lose the game though." The more experienced duelist commented as he pulled up his cards. "I have a theory, you know."

The brunette shuffled her borrowed cards and stuffed them in the large pile, inquisitive green eyes locking onto him. "Oh, and what would that be?"

With an utterly deadpan look on his face, the younger brother replied. "I think Kestrel and Seto have a thing for each other."

There was silence, then...

"Hahaha! You're kidding right?!? Seto is like an emotional rock and Kestrel is too much of a hippie. Those two, hooking up?" The current mistress of the house laughed.

"Seto isn't half as cold as you think." The orphan folded his arms across his chest and frowned in defense. "I think they would be good together."

Wavering at her friend's resolution, the female student shrugged. "Even if your brother could have feeling for her, Kess has... an issue with men."

The victor blinked. "What she's gay?"

Talla almost choked. "No! Nothing like that! She just... well let's just say she has issues with male attention."

Mokuba was still bewildered, but something dark in his best friend's eyes quieted any further examination. "Come on, let's go play with Dante."

§

The CEO of Kaiba Corp was finishing the blueprints for a new holographic protocol when the phone rang.

"Who is it?" He demanded in his own annoyed monotone.

"Mr. Kaiba, Mikagi Corp is on line one for you." The high voice of his secretary came across the speaker.

_What does she want? _The tall businessman wondered with a scowl. "Put them on."

There was a brief moment of beeping and then a distinctly male, official voice greeted him.

"Hello Mr. Kaiba, this is Dr. David from Mikagi Corp calling. Ms. Amun would like me to inform you that she will be working later at the hospital and would request that you attend dinner with the children at six."

Steel blue eyes narrowed under their bangs. "And why couldn't she get on the phone to tell me this?"

The other man, to his benefit, did not allow any fear to be shown in his tone. "I am afraid that Ms. Amun is busy with a patient right now and is not available for talk. Shall I give her a message?"

Seto growled into the other line. "Fine, I'll be there!"

The handset clashed down in his wake, the victim of its owner's sudden annoyance.

_It's as if she thinks that she is the only one with a company to run._ Her thought bitterly, though a small smirk graced his lips when he was sure of retribution.

_Talla is going to eat her alive when she finds out._

His coldly intelligent gaze wandered to the clock on his wall.

_I have two hours left. All I have to do is finish this prototype up and have the diagram ready for the meeting tomorrow morning._

Long, pale fingers worked their way skillfully across the keyboard as lines began to form on the fluorescent screen. The emotionless look of concentration began to wear as curiosity piqued up.

_What is so important that Kestrel would miss dinner? She is nearly obsessed about it._

A 3-D reenactment began to scan onto the hard drive, copying itself for further replay later on.

_If she's off with that fucking mutt again..._

His imagination sped up and the strike of keys became more abusive.

_Why do I even care?_

The long ignored question rose in his temple again, sure to supply it with a headache.

_Is it because she left me to watch out for them?_

Now that was just hypocritical. After all, Kestrel had been tending to Mokuba for some time now.

_Why do I have this feeling? What is it?_

And no matter how long the infamous duelist stared at the high-tech laptop, no answer appeared on its screen.

§

The doctor walked out of the pediatric ward, smiling and happy with herself despite the splitting headache and exhaustion that she felt. Amber eyes looked up to a smiley-faced wall clock.

_Quarter after seven... I wonder how dinner is going._

Giving a rueful smile, the woman strode to her office, preparing some last minute charts on her subjects for that day.

_Kanders needs a specialized diet of no sodium... Laurel should receive further aromatherapy in her room... _

"Ms. Amun!" A short man with graying blond hair ran up to her, phone in hand.

"David, is something wrong?" The owner of the hospital asked as he panted at her knees.

"Well I heard your cell ringing and I couldn't find you, but the caller said it was urgent that he speak with you." The trainee said between breaths, handing her the silver phone.

"Oh, well thank you David." The tawny-haired individual replied with an amount of polite surprise as she accepted her own cell phone back and put it up to her ear.

"Hello?"

"I hear you've been bad, my dear one." The voice on the other end was male, snaking and dark to the point of madness.

Instinctively, the medic stiffened and her face fell into a blank. Underneath, fear clutched at her breast and drove to get past the hardened professional state to poison her thoughts.

"Who is this?" Kestrel asked as calmly as she could, not daring to even breath.

"Oh, I think you know me. I am your master, little bird. And you were very, very, naughty to try and fly away from me, eh?"

Some throbbing pain resounded around her core. She _knew_ that voice. There was no asking how he had found her, or cursing at the cruelties of the world. It was only that voice, and the threat that it carried unspoken with it.

"What do you want?" The businesswoman's own voice was soft and curt, away from David's prying ears as he gave her a worried expression.

"Deal with the man beside you." Another chill went down her spine at this. So he could see her too.

Without missing a beat, the young woman turned to her employee and flashed him a bright smile. "My sister's having some trouble at home. Finish those charts for me, will you?"

David gave her a relieved grin and nodded. "Of course Ms. Amun."

With her cover, the slender teen stepped out of the hospital carefully, as not to raise alarm.

"Good... now walk down to South Street."

Following the directions while keeping her sharp eyes searching for her antagonist, the adoptive mother crossed the road and took a direct left toward the slightly deserted road. She was all too aware of the oncoming darkness.

"Go all the way down the street and then make a left onto South Hampton."

With mute compliance, the white jacket-clad figure made her lonely way down the road and turned on her heel to the other street.

"Very good, see you are re-learning to be a good pet. Soon you will be perfect again. You just need a little scare, yes! Now go behind the rafters and you'll see your little surprise."

Beating fear down as best she could, the trained physician followed the instructions. At first she saw nothing in the gloom... and then a dark silhouette... Without thinking, the elder Amun bent down to get a better look.

There was cackling on the other end of the phone as the healer reeled back, making her tongue bleed with the ferocity she bit down to keep either bile or a scream from rising.

"What is this Tabar?" She spoke back to the person in anger for the first time.

However Tabar simply laughed back. "Take this as a warning, my sweet pet. Remember now, you have people to loose. It would be a shame if that girl ended up back here... or maybe one of those Kaiba brothers you seem so fond of..."

Bird-like eyes widened, and the phone dropped among the gravel as she sprinted away. Behind her was the corpse of some unfortunate victim of circumstance. The body lay on its back, arms spread eagle out. Bloody lettering emphasized the message.

_You are my bird._

§

Kestrel ran back to the hospital, forgetting all weariness and exhaustion. With quick effectiveness, she ordered a car to take her back to her manor, cursing herself for dropping the phone.

_Please, let them be all right... Just don't let any of them be hurt..._

"Ms. Amun, we have arrived." The driver stated, preparing to open her door. Quick as a flash, the house owner leaped out of the car, and began running toward her front door.

_Be safe!_

§

It was by chance, or fate if you so belief, that Montague spotted his mistress sprinting up the long pathway to the front door. Immediately aroused, he strode into the dining area where two children sat with a mildly bad-tempered man.

"Ms. Amun is back, and I think she wishes to greet you all." The head of staff said smoothly.

"I am going to kick her ass!" Talla exclaimed, hopping up from her seat.

Mokuba quickly followed after, and reluctantly the other Kaiba went with a scowl on his face.

The brunette opened the door about the same time her sister swung it open. Pouting, the girl prepared for a long berating. However, swift hands began touching her. Silenced by surprise, Talla watched as her adoptive mother felt her down for any injuries before repeating the swift pats with an equally confused Mokuba. Her tailored expression was strained, and as soon as the medic was satisfied with their good condition, she wrapped both her arms around the two of them.

"Kess?" The girl's voice was muffled in alarm.

The strong CEO was trembling as she held both children to her, long blond strands hiding her vibrant eyes from view. Something had scared the shit out of her.

"Ms. Amun?" Mokuba lapsed back into formality as his cheeks burnt red.

Finally breaking the embrace, the slender teen stood up and seemed to eye over the duelist standing by her doorway, arching an eyebrow at her in curiosity.

"You're all okay." The elder sister murmured to herself. She was still shaking.

Concern began to rise up against anger in the tall brunette's eyes as he leaned away from the wall. There was something so fragile about that smile...

And then she promptly passed out.

§

A/N: Sorry about the delay! The holidays are coming up and I had surgery on Monday so I went out everyday of the week before that... Anyways, its been really busy—but I hope you all like this chapter and happy holidays!


	16. Confucius's Amor

_She says its hard to say goodbye_

_It's not forever lasting_

_How come you left me here standing_

_I'm so lonely_

_Calm down I'll be right back_

_No, please don't forget me here_

_-'Gone by December' -Edgewater_

§

He might have believed it was just exhaustion if it had been any other person. Not Amun, Not that damnably assured and_ warm _woman; she would not let a little thing like lack of sleep get to her.

Curiosity.

That is what had him leaning against the wall with a frown on his face.

Human decency, perhaps. (Which he did have, by the way, despite the doubt of some certain dog-like people)

But nothing more.

That is what Seto Kaiba kept telling himself as he stood by a unconscious blond.

After much pushing from Montague, Talla was ushered out of the room to play a game with her friend. There were mutterings on her way out such as, 'Making me worry so damn much' and 'Idiot forgot to breath'. However her concern was written in neon pastels in those expressive hazel green eyes. The CEO's scowl deepened as he glared at the limp figure, almost trying to intimidate her awake.

_Look at her, peaceful as anything with her even breaths and fluttering eyes and..._

The brunette clenched his hands to abruptly stop that train of thought. His inner persona was scoffing.

_As if that wrench could make me feel that way._

_Then why are you so worried? _A more subdued, devious voice snuck in.

"Damn it Kestrel, you are a load of trouble." The blue-eyed duelist commented aloud to dispel his previous thoughts.

"My apologies," A groggy voice replied and made him start.

The bachelor's stare fixated on a pair of dazed amber eyes and he was the first to look away. She was either too kind or too tired to comment on it though. Instead, the businesswoman propped herself up and began to swing her legs over the bed.

"Take it slow." The tall man snapped before he could curb his tongue. If he could recall how to blush, this would have been a good time.

"Pardon?" The previously indisposed female spoke up in a somewhat flat voice.

"I just wasted two hours on you." The elder brother tucked his heart away. "If you strain your fragile little self again it'll take more time."

"Ah, my apologies again. Though I hope you didn't feel obligated for me to awaken." The medic stood without any hint of her previous state.

_What is with the formality? _The businessman fought back the urge to shake her until she snapped at him. At least that made more sense. "Hm,"

"Well forgive me about dinner. I hope you enjoyed it. However, I would appreciate it if you were to take Mokuba home this evening." The doctor continued in polite docility.

The teen found himself enraged at nothing. "Aren't you avoiding something?"

His near growl didn't create any sort of rise in her. "Is there anything you needed?"

The honey eyes were vacant and distanced. They weren't normal. As a genius, he thrived on patterns and continuities. Nuances and unpredictability were his enemy. And in her own twisted way, what was normal for the elder sister was to charmingly insult him, chide his lack of social skills, and bite his head off for something she actually found offensive. He had seen this side of her when Mokuba was hurt, but that was different. There was a cause and a reason for that. This.. this was vexing.

"Yes, like why the hell did you pass out?" The cold-hearted boy demanded in a warningly calm voice with his infamous glare that would have had Pegasus swear off cartoons.

The healer blinked. "Exhau—"

"Bullshit! Don't lie to me Kestrel." Kaiba snapped. _Kestrel! See, your Kestrel and I'm Seto. So stop being... Amun._

"You should take Mokuba home. It's getting late." She might as well have slapped him. In fact, slapping him would have been better. Because then he could belittle her and she could insult him and then everything would be normal again, predictable.

However she didn't slap him and he didn't jeer at her. Instead, Seto collected himself and placed his aloof shield back up.

"Thank you for your hospitality. I am sure Mokuba enjoyed staying here." He was locking himself away again and she wasn't reaching out to pry him forth.

The CEO turned and strode into the dining area. "Mokuba, come on. We're going home."

The little black haired boy jumped in surprise but his happiness was diminished by the exceedingly frozen aura his brother was giving off.

"What about Kess?" The little girl asked quickly.

"I'm fine." The tawny-haired woman strode into the room, hair fastened securely back and smile on face. "But everything is safe so now Mokuba can return home. We will miss you."

"O-Okay." The boy replied, looking confusedly between his thin-lipped brother and the beaming mistress.

He got up from the game and somehow felt like his entire soul was heavy. " Bye Talla."

She must have sensed the strangeness in the air for her reply was just as sombre. "See you at school Mokuba."

The two males strode out the door, and Kaiba gave one glance back. One last chance for her to call him back with her wit and friendship and tolerance.

"Goodbye... Amun."

The door swung shut.

§

Kestrel realized just how much that human ice block had meant to her when a sudden pain rushed into her chest at the sound of her family name. She had to stop the compulsion to grip the flesh above her heart in hopes of stemming the bleeding. However, this only forced to reassure the founder of Mikage that she had made the right decision.

_Even if he hates me, he's still safe. I can watch those two from a distance now and Tabot won't touch them. Forgive me... Seto. It was for your own good, even if you'll never understand._

Dully, the medic registered that she was still smiling even as it felt as though a chunk of herself had just ripped itself out of her body.

_I'm protecting them. It's not like last time... _

Her feet made their way up the stairs after mumbling some excuse to her adoptive daughter.

_This is right. I've done what is right._

Her slender form stood in the doorway to her office, prepared to submerge in work.

_Then why does it hurt so much? _That voice was younger, naive. She knew why.

_Because I've taken their punishment. I've paid for their existence. It's what I must do._

Three more steps and she had entered the room.

_You cared about him._

_I care about them both._

Alone, the grin fell off like cheap plaster and a whimsical grimace lined her features instead.

_I'd probably fail my own sanity evaluation._

Her skillful fingers lifted the cup of coffee Montague had previously placed along with a basket of fruits and a little note reading, 'Pass out again and I'll let Dante eat all your work.' As the caffeine infiltrated her system, that childish persona was growing fainter.

_He might... Tabat could still target them._

_Not if I cooperate. He knows that one kill is enough for me to obey him._

_But... wait... you're going to listen to him?_

_If I must._

_...Why..._

_Because I won't let anyone else suffer for my sake._

The chart began to fill in deep, black ink as the voice entirely faded out and she devoted herself to the company.

The ache would dull.

§

_Raped. That was the physician's horrible judgment. It was what the scarring, the bruising, and the bleeding equaled. It wasn't all that uncommon in his land, and he shouldn't have felt such a revolution but..._

_It was her._

_Kakra was his friend. She was his sister in everything but blood. They grew up together._

_She was that dangerously rogue and playful spirit that was always just out of mortal grasp and yet forever dancing with them. _

_She was wind and freedom and dreams..._

_She was Kakra. _

_His stomach was uneasy._

_"My pharaoh," Isis approached with a concerned look. "Are you well?"_

_"As good as can be, High Priestess." His tone was grave but he no longer felt like vomiting, thankfully._

_"It is Lady Kakra?" She received a nod. "I sought you out for your permission to talk with you, My Pharaoh. I am familiar with her from the temple training and..."_

_Isis was upset too. He gave her an encouraging smile. "Please do High Priestess. I think we would all feel better."_

_The dark-haired woman bowed. "Thank you My Pharaoh."_

_As her white-robed form disappeared another frown lined his forehead. Isis had just reminded him of someone he needed to talk to._

_The High Priest. _

_Seth had been anxious about the woman's condition since she had been after him in the first place. However in the three days she had been back, this was the first word as to what exactly happened to her. He would want to know. _

_Want to know and then go cast the perpetrator into Nun's womb._

_He wanted to get revenge just as much. However he knew that unless Kakra herself revealed the name there would be little chance of capturing him... or them. And with her current state that was not happening soon._

_Still, it would be better for Seth to hear it from his childhood friend, cousin, and king rather than anyone else. He was likely to jinx anyone else's scale or something just as cruel. _

_So biting back a sigh, he made his way through the familiar halls of the Pharaoh's Court and took a sharp left turn to the priest and priestesses. He hoped to find him in his chambers, in a relatively good humor if Ra allowed. Building up power in a long retained practice, he knocked upon the double doors._

_There was no reply. He rapped again._

_Disgruntled noises, a scuffing against the stone floor and then the door opened._

_"Look this had better be important because—" The taller man stopped himself midway. "M-My Pharaoh why didn't you send a ... what are you?" _

_He could not even muster joy from seeing his stoic priest so flustered with the weight of his message so heavy. _

_"High Priest... Seth," He amended with a faint softening of his eyes. "It's Kakra."_

_The other man tensed visibly and his deep cerulean eyes focused on his ruler._

_"The physician has just announced what happened and I thought I should be the one to tell you."_

_"What is it Atem?" He forgot formalities in his anxiety._

_"It's actually normal for our time so we should have expected it... she'll live and there is little chance of any lasting injury thanks to Isis's healing powers." He was still the Pharaoh. He would dally if he choose. Even under that harsh glare._

_"Kakra was raped, Seth."_

_Blue splintered into a thousand shades of red._

_§_

Yugi gulped in air as he woke with a start. Violet eyes were wide and sheets thrown away in haste. His thin body was drenched in a cold sweat as he panted; numb with shock.

Before he was truly aware, his bedroom door opened.

"Sorry Yugi." It was his grandfather. "I was doing some late night cleaning and I dropped a plate. Hope I didn't startle you."

The boy managed to gather himself enough to produce shaky vocals in the dark. "No grandpa, I'm fine."

The old man nodded in the dim. "Alright then, goodnight."

"'Night." The spiky haired prodigy whispered back before settling back down in his pillows, looking blankly at the yellow celling as he recounted his dream.

"Yami," His call was short and instinctive.

The spirit appeared beside him. "I am sorry Yugi. I should have been able to shield you from that. I just..."

The phantom man had a dark look on his face and the host could feel remorse, disgust, and dread from his link.

"You knew before,didn't you?" The younger one asked softly.

The Egyptian looked away. "I didn't think it was something you should know."

"Don't do that Yami." The mortal said with kind firmness. "After all we've been through I thought you understood that your problems are my problems too. We work things out together."

A flickering smile appeared and left the Pharaoh's ethereal face. "I... I'm not sure that this is my problem."

The modern day child blinked in surprise. "But we can't just sit back and wait for Kestrel to be... for her to..." His tongue was reluctant to form that phrase.

"I know." The elder duelist replied half to himself. "But there is something almost warning me... not to get involved."

"Yami..."

_We've always been the hero. Why now?_

The 5,000 year old read the thoughts from his bond. He gave a sharp nod with his translucent face and determination filled his crimson eyes

"We'll do it Yugi. We'll prevent the same thing from happening to Kakra, or Kestrel, again."

"Together." The teen reminded him with a relieved smile and allowed his encouragement to pour through their mental chain.

"Right."Atem reaffirmed with a true smile. "However we won't be able to do anything if you're too tired to even stand up straight."

"Got it." The reincarnation chimed in with a renewed feeling of purpose. This was what they did. They saved people.

However a glum thought interrupted the youth's optimistic mood. His partner felt the fluctuation from his other half.

"Yugi what is it?"

He frowned. "I just thought of something Yami..."

"Oh?"

The frown deepened and lines formed above his brow.

"What if...you know... it already happened?"

§

The cafeteria buzzed with idle chatter and hungry gnashing. It splurged on the drug of innocence and freedom; spinning in the laughter and smiles of children. The yellow carded room touched every inch except for one lone table whose blue hue seemed much too somber. Two separate people sat on the table, both grim and old in their youth.

"Maybe they will be better by Sunday." Mokuba began after mulling over his lunch for a few silent moments.

"They're aren't anymore dinners." She replied with a particularly vicious stab at the fish in front of her.

Blue eyes blinked. "When did Kestrel decide that?"

Talla sighed dramatically. "Sis didn't. It was already decided. Sheesh, can't you read any sort of subtlety?"

"Yes. I can read that your mahi-mahi is crying. Stop mutilating it already." Apparently some of his best friend's sardonic wit had rubbed off on the younger Kaiba.

Sticking her tongue out, the brunette placed her chopsticks down. "And they were getting along so well. What happened?!"

The black haired boy shook his head. "I don't know. Maybe something happened right after your sister woke up and Seto was in the room alone with her.

The green eyed girl tugged fiercely at her hair. "But what? How can we fix something we don't know about?!"

"Talla," The co-owner of Kaiba Corp spoke with renewed grimness.

Her attention gathered itself onto him.

"I don't think we should intervene this time. We'll still be able to see each other, you know that. But let Kestrel and Seto work this out on their own. Whatever happened is above us." His jaw was firm, brow narrowed in determination.

The younger Amun blinked at the change in her best friend. "If you say so."

§

"So she's pushed him away. Ah, so predictable little one." Tabar conversed with himself as the bright gray eyes scanned the screen.

"What's happened?" A powerful man entered the laboratory and handed his coat to a hired hand waiting at the door.

"It seems as if dearest Kestrel doesn't want a repeat of last time and so has separated herself with the Kaiba brothers. It's pointless love, you are still mine." The demented man replied with the last part spoken to her frozen image on the screen.

Gobzobora frowned. "What do you mean, separated? For our plan, we need them together."

Tabar waved him aside. "Yes, yes it will all work. She's trying to protect your sons so I don't get them like last time. Emotionally, my silly bird is attached to them. The plan will work."

"Last time?" The founder of Kaiba Corp echoed as he accessed the mainframe and scanned through the last hours footage of the said people.

Tabar laughed in that completely mad way of his. "She is forever my bird. Always and eternally mine. Sometimes Kestrel forgets this, so she needs a little reminder. But as long as she has a heart, I own it."

"You can do what you want with the girl once I have my company returned." The adoptive father stated coldly.

"Of course, of course. I have my reasons for wanting you in control of Kaiba Corp." The other man glanced back quickly.

"Is the machine ready?" Kaiba demanded after a short pause filled in with the striking of keys.

"Sophie owes me. She was a used up pet, but she's still loyal. It will come."

"And all you want in exchange is the girl?" The savvy businessman added for reassurance.

"There is nothing else I desire except for my bird."

Gozobora turned back to the large computer screen.

"Let's get started then."

§

A/N: Sorry for the long wait just for a filler chapter. But I needed to progress their relationship a bit, show somes character changes and take up time. We can't have Tabar and Gozobora moving too fast for life now can we? The next chapter will be another filler, and then back to the plot, promise! Luv ya all and happy holidays!


	17. Running, Pushing, and Shoving

_It takes a lot...to be always on form..._

_It takes a lot._

_I maybe not...all the time, all I've got..._

_Maybe not._

_Been one of those days...  
Safety first, don't push...what's the hurry?  
One nerve remaining, waiting on one look...have you got it?  
Have you got it in you?  
Have you got it in you?_

_All at once, not a whisper, nor word.  
Then all at once...  
Let me have it all, let me have a battle on,  
Easy target,  
Look can we just...just get it over with.  
It's getting worse, against all the odds...  
It's getting worse.  
(Guard down, floor's yours, last man standing can we, just get it over with.)_

_Been one of those days...  
Safety first, don't push...don't push me...what's the hurry?  
Cause there's One nerve remaining, waiting on one look,  
One look now...have you got it?  
Have you got it in you?  
Have you got it in you?_

_Blue blue day make me blue...  
Head down, quick! Take cover, big girl in a mood.  
Blue you, make me anymore blue?  
Long spin shout power clean right out of your suit._

_One more, one more, one more, one more_

_Been one of those days...  
Safety first, don't push...what's the hurry?  
One nerve remaining, waiting on one look...have you got it?  
Have you got it in you?  
Have you got it in you?  
Have you got it in you?  
Have you got it in you? _

_-_"Have you got it in you," by Imogen Heap

§

The sun fell upon her heavily as she pried her eyes open. Half-opened pools of amber stared listlessly at the ornate décor in her bedroom. The ornate detail of the brassy ceiling sported miniature angels, carved faces of stern saints, and designs in complex curves or winds. Baroque style, after the Castle Church in Amboise.

_Amboise... I wonder what has changed there. Maybe nothing, hm, that place is as stubborn to move as molasses._ The art's golden monochromatic tone held a strange connection to the unusual hollowness on her mind.

_What is wrong with me?_ She wondered dully, unable to force her limbs to move. They were weighted, as if the shafts of light steaming through her half-opened window were bindings to the comfort and bed. _It's like I can't even get up._

The feeling had that rusted familiarity of something long ago. In another past life; as another person, these mornings had been norm. But not for _Kestrel Amun_. She was an ambitious medic and company owner, a charitable young adult who adopted a child. The number one bachelorette.

_And a lonely, defeated woman. _It was a different voice then the persistent, childish one that usually came forth to argue against her logic. This inner persona was cold, narcissistic. It was one she thought she had left behind with her name. Apparently, though, demons don't just hand in with paperwork.

_I'm not broken. _She tried to force conviction into her mental argument. She c**ould not** be broken, did not have the **time** to be out. However, it seemed much too difficult to move, think... to fight. It would be so much easier to just turn over and go back to that dark, endless thing... Her incense would bade away the dreams. Emptiness, sounded so inviting this oddly despondent morning.

_Liar. _Finding the strength to prop herself on her forearms, the teenager allowed tangled locks of tawny hair to veil her face. Her vibrant eyes were unfocused and hazy, lost in their own war. The attractive facial set was blank, expressionless as an open white canvas.

_Why am I... Where is this coming from? _It had been a while since the doctor had felt depression this bad. That is what it was, no denying. A chemical imbalance in the neural system which caused a pull on the mental and spiritual state of a person. In that past life, she had been as familiar with it as air. Now, though, it had been so long... And really, she didn't deserve to feel it right now. She was rich, young, and beautiful. Her work was fulfilling, and where it lacked there was always Talla to nurture. She had been so content, just a moment ago it seemed. Satisfied, Living with the flow. Now it seemed that—that—

Cold blue eyes, hidden behind a cage of sharp mahogany hair; bore into her thoughts. Her slender form bent and pain erupted somewhere above her left breast. It warmed her like liquor, blossoming from her chest and down to her navel and then snapping her toes into sharp attention. She bit her lip to keep from crying out, embracing the pain as a caffeine. A high was a high to an addict. The method didn't matter to an addict. And so the young, tawny woman took the hurt she couldn't quite convince herself was physical. She basked in it, allowed her senses to rouse under it until she has stored enough to move throughout the day. Then, and only then, did she release it with the softest call.

"Seto..."

§

Thin lips, almost permanently turned to a scowl, parted just wide enough to allow scant sips of the hot beverage through. The double-shot espresso tightened his already wound nervous system. The drink had once again become his life-blood. Steely eyes shifted for a moment from the laptop to the digital clock on the pale blue wall. They narrowed in remembrance.

Two days.

He hadn't slept in two days; not since... _Kestrel_

He gritted his teeth, shoving the thought away forcefully.

_That_, he acknowledged, _Is **the **last thing I need to be focused on. The damn women cost me enough time with her little dizzy spell and Kodak picture dinner scenes. _

Focusing once more on the fluorescent screen, his fingers commanding the keys with rigid melody. It was a systematic music in his controlled, lined world. His prototype flipped around, providing his cursor with full vantage at the creation of its right side. White lines fell across the blue background, going from bland 2D to a three-dimensional demonstration at the tap of a key. The wonders of modern technology.

_You enjoyed those little Kodak dinner scenes, though._ A faint breath of inner persona demanded with quiet sorrow. His elegant hands pressed a little harder on the pad in reinforcement.

_About as much as dental visits. I owed Amun that for saving Mokuba, and then for keeping him safe.  
_

But this nagging tone, soft and mournful as it could be, did not end at that.

_It was almost like you were a family. A mother and a father with two kids. It was nice, wasn't it?  
_

There was a lapse, in which the diagram gained one jagged white line. Frowning at the faltering, he made a swift move to delete the imperfect mark. There was no tolerance for faulty, no room for weakness.

_All I need is my brother. We've always made it together, by our own._

Kaiba waited, almost impatiently, for that voice to pipe back up. There was no response. And somehow, as the empty strike of keys and careful click of a mouse resounded loudly in the silence; he **almost** wished it would. Almost.

The CEO picked up his black wireless phone from the hook, mechanically pushing a number.

The other line picked up almost instantly. "Do you need anything, sir?" It was Rolland.

_Well it's not like I page to hear your voice. _A scathing remark came to mind. However, the duelist used a curt tone to express his disdain instead. "I've been away. Call a mandatory board meeting; tomorrow at eight."

"B-But sir," The head employee stuttered slightly. "Some of our board live countries away. It would be imposs—"

His employer cut him off with a dangerously crisp monotone. "I don't care. Just do it."

Ah, to be omnipotent again.

"...Yes sir," The older man agreed almost woefully.

Without waiting, the younger man hung the phone back into its holder. The trademark smirk changed his countenance. Finally, some honest-to-goodness work. Checking back on his company from his absence, finishing this prototype for his engineers, checking on the stocks...

Up three points.

If he was anyone else, the brunette would have smiled. As it was, he kept on smirking.

_It seems that everything is running smoothly._

And at the board meeting tomorrow, he would announce his newest project.

§

The warmth of the morning sun soaked into his permanently bronze-stained skin. Orchid eyes lifted a little at the simple glory of a new day. Children laughing in the park, a man walking his dog. It was just one of those days you're thankful for being alive.

"Hey Yug!" A sudden voice interrupted the Pharaoh's admiration and he quickly turned to the source of the noise.

"Joey, sorry to keep you waiting." He replied with a welcoming smile.

The blond waved it aside easily. "Don't worry about it. So, you was there anything special you wanted to do today?"

The duel champion blinked his eyes. "Yeah... why do you ask?"

"Eh," Crimson wound its way on his cheeks. "Well... it's nothing." He admitted with a defeated sigh.

His best friend furrowed his brown in worry. "Come on Joey, what is it?"

The taller boy shuffled his feet, soft brown eyes focused on the ground. "It's nothin'... Just, someone else called me and I was wondering; you know... if there wasn't anything special going on that maybe I could... I dunno..."

"It's Mai, isn't it?" Yugi grinned, the deepening shade of red on his companion's cheeks agreeing with him.

The eldest Wheeler looked abashed. "Well, I wouldn't ditch you but—"

The spiky-haired boy held up his hand. "It is fine. Go on and see her. I haven't heard about Mai in a while anyways."

It was no secret how the idiot felt about the golden-haired vixen. It had grown from the boat-ride: I think your hot, to a duel for her salvation: I love you more than myself. After their ordeal with Darts, the female duelist had left with the rest of their former enemies. That had been, what? Six, Seven months ago? Needless to say, none of them had achieved closure with the girl. It had been especially hard on Joey.

"Thanks bud!" The street-rat gave him a nervous sort of smile before running off with a promise to make up their day another time.

_"I'm glad for him." _The modern day boy mentally spoke to his other-half.

_"I am too." _Yami smiled in the body, gaze trailing after the shaggy blond head until it was out of sight.

A mental sigh. _"I hope it works out with them this time."_

The Egyptian gave an invisible nod. _"It will take work. A lot has come between those two."_

The host let frustration leek through his bond. _"Why are they both so stubborn? It's clear to EVERYONE else that they have feelings for each other!"_

The spirit chuckled inwardly. _"They remind me of someone else."_

Yugi felt wary at the rare, teasing feel from the twin soul. _"What are you getting at?"_

When the image of a blue-eyed brunette flashed through his vision, he was glad that Yami was in control of the body. _"Yami!"_

The 5,000-year old mentally shrugged. _"But perhaps love is like that."_

Still a bit flustered, the boy questioned suspiciously. _"Like what?"_

The current controller of the body looked upward to the vast expanse of the clear cerulean sky. The wind ruffled his high color and whisked his tall hair.

"The most obvious thing in the world," He whispered to the empty beauty of the day; "And yet the hardest thing to see."

§

"So you want us to test the mixture, right?" A white-jacketed man checked, pushing up his glasses as he looked at his employer.

She smiled back at him, tawny hair pulled back from her work in the laboratory. Easily, she winked. "Yes, I'm glad you understand."

The man swallowed a little harder in the face of her innocent gestures. Cheeks slightly reddening, he nodded and excused himself.

With her scientist's leave, the CEO of Mikagi Corp turned back to her work. Skilled fingers slipped through long medical journals as a focused line on her forehead appeared. Her nails trailed after the words taken in by caramel orbs. Putting the clipboard down, the medic took one labeled vial of clear chemicals and carefully added two drops into a granulated cylinder. Swiftly, Amun crossed the sterile threshold and scanned through the rows of preserved plants. Selecting one, she removed the box and unzipped an airtight bag to pull out the deceivingly fresh green leaves. Her lab coat fluttered as the adoptive mother turned back to her long, pale table and selected a small number of oval leaves. They stood in contrast with her white gloves as she dropped them into the mortar before picking up the pestle and setting to work. Her methods were older, almost wicken, but she found that the earth often gave the best cures. Once an evergreen paste was achieved, the doctor scooped out the mixture into a crucible. Lighting the buns-and-burner, she carefully placed it over the open flame, tweaking the gas a bit.

The woman stepped away, tucking a loose strand of blonder hair behind her ear. Taking a breath, her next steps were interrupted by an easy knock at her open laboratory door.

Kestrel turned with taut awareness that took her visitor by surprise. The tense look on her face passed quickly though, as her eyes warmed to who was casually leaning against her door frame.

"Yugi," The teenager pulled the crucible out of the flame with tongs and set it out to cool before stepping forward to greet him. "What a pleasant surprise."

He moved away from the wall with a smile. "Well, I went to see if you were busy today and Montague mentioned that you skipped lunch."

At this, the young man held up a bag with an enticing aroma his friend sniffed appreciatively.

"Mm, smells great. Is it past lunch already? I feel as though I've hardly been down here an hour." The girl admitted with a little laugh.

Mouto shook the bag. "It's take-out from one of my favorite restaurants. Care to join?"

The eldest Amun grinned and removed the latex gloves. "I would love to. Just let me take off this coat."

In a matter of moments, the two friends were sitting on a blanket in the nearest park, enjoying the kind weather of the way and the delectable taste of the food. It was an easy companionship between them, filled with laughter and talk.

_Almost as if we knew each other in a past life. _Yami thoughts, suddenly reminded of his true purpose here.

"Kestrel?" The past ruler began with a level of apprehension.

Looking up from her food, she blinked at his sudden turn to seriousness. "Is something wrong, Yugi?"

The violet-eyed man took one steadying breath before speaking. "Have you thought about what I said before? About the past?"

The smile slid off before the businesswoman could think to replace it. "I suppose... with all I've seen... such a thing may not be an impossibility."

He nodded, forcing the words out before he could hesitate. "Good; because in one of my dreams, something... bad happened to you, or rather the woman called Kakra who looks just like you."

She seemed wary, but not reclusive yet. "Something bad?"

It was almost cruel, that he should be forced to say this under such simple beauty and peace. But it must be said, for her sake.

"You were... Kakra was... violated." There all out in it's ugly, rearing head to eat away all of the niceties.

Amun's face was blank, eyes expressionless at the moment. Then, a forced smile found its way to her lips. "I can give you some incense to clear up those dreams, Yugi."

Denial. Disbelief. The duelist frowned sadly. "Kestrel please, you have to believe me!"

"Why?" His friend demanded softly. "Because you had a dream? Yugi, I have dreams of dogs flying. They don't mean anything."

Her quiet seemed more dangerous then a scream. The polite distance was broken by her shaking. It was control, she struggled for—and it was frightening.

"But I am different. Mine are real." Yami lowered his voice as if talking to a frightened animal. He reached out to touch her shoulder in comfort and she recoiled almost instinctively.

"Forgive me Mouto," The woman was pushing him out as she stood. "But I must be back to my work." A bow. "Thank you for lunch."

The tri-color haired prodigy stood swiftly, desperately trying to reach the present-day Kakra. "Kestrel, please just hear me out."

The medical practitioner turned back to him, shaking her head. "Why are you doing this?"

The boy halted in his tracks, taken off guard by her confusion. "Because I want to protect you."

Her eyes widened.

_"I'll protect you." He whispered in her ear, helping her stand as she shook. She clung to his warmth and sanity. "I won't let him do this to you."_

_She was sobbing softly, a ragged mess supported by his strong chest. Her tongue was too swollen for speech._

_Carefully, he kissed her forehead. "You're safe now... It's all right."_

The memory flashed too quickly in her mind and the blond-haired individual reeled back from the power of it. Her heart rate sped, breathing hiked.

"I won't let this happen again." The healer whispered, too soft for the other teenager to hear.

The girl took steps backward, keeping up a facade of polite nodding and smiling. "I am sorry, Mouto, I really do have to go."

Pleading violet-red eyes followed her retreat as she spun on her heels and put as much security as possible in her step. She was walking away. Again.

His gaze followed her back into the office building, where Kestrel took one steadying breath and placed a cooling hand to her heart to slow it. It took a moment to collect herself against the wall before she was off again

_I won't let it happen again._

She turned the corner, and came face-to-face with the visage of her nightmares.

"Hello little one. It's so nice to see you in the flesh again."

Leon Tabat

§

A/N: Yay! Filler end!


	18. Strangers on a Train

_All the pain that haunts me still.  
And all the shame surrounding you, is now the past that I can't kill.  
Forever wrapped around me.  
And all the sadness was your life, are now the things that I can't hide.  
It's just a fear that's deep inside, from all the years of hiding._

_There's a ghost that's inside of my mind, and a pain is still haunting me.  
So I can never go back and rewind.  
And I can never have peace or be still._

_Somebody take this away.  
But I have lived for you, and every single little thing you do.  
But I have lived for you, and I won't kill myself for loving you. _

_ -_'No Regrets, Volume Two '-Saliva

§

_It was storming outside, a great rage of nature against the transgressions of the people. Or perhaps mourning of them. It was impossible to tell._

_He bit his lip, forcing his blue eyes to stay dry as they looked out the wide, Victorian-style window. Pale, manicured hands clenched against the pain as the crop descended again and again._

_Gozobora had gotten bored with the monotony of the cane and decided to switch to his old riding crop. It was a nice, but showy item that had no better use then to raise welts on the back of the future heir. _

_A voice, blurred by the buzz of pain, was talking in a casual firmness, as if nothing particularly exciting or atrophic was happening._

_"You are being punished, Seto. Do you know why?"_

_The adoptive child tried to focus on the question instead of the raw tenderness of his skin and the unholy rapping of the rain and wind outside. _

_"Because... I fell asleep during my lesson... sir." It was hard to remember formalities as the boy contained screams bubbling in his throat._

_Unfortunately, Kaiba picked up on the orphan's hesitance and brought the crop down with particular viciousness. In response, the sharp, beryl irises widened and a barely audible gasp escaped his thin lips. The CEO smirked at the sound, finally stopping his physical assault. _

_A thick, warm wetness filtered through the intensity of the brunette's nerves and he watched with growing numbness as two penny-sized dollops of crimson fell to the plush white of the carpet and spread into a red stain. _

_"Sleeping while we should be doing other tasks is a sign of weakness. The Kaiba family has no such flaw. Is that clear to you, Seto?"_

_The coolness was creeping along his flesh, dulling the pain even as it forced his vision to drift back, menially to the window. _

_"Yes sir."_

_"Is such behavior going to occur again?"_

_"No sir."_

_"If you are to be my heir you must become stronger."_

_"I understand sir."_

_The sadist granted a satisfied smirk. With a dominating noise, he turned and strode out of the room._

_His victim stood quite still, listening to the soothing patter of the rain and the lullaby of the winds. It was calming, clearing to his disoriented mind._

_This is what he had earned. At the orphanage, he had defeated Gozobora. He had worked, wanted this chance and now he had it. Everything was going according to plan._

_The elder brother smiled bitterly, not realizing that his sight was smoking along the edges._

_What he had desired? To live and breath by the whim of another? To be conformed into some sort of machine? What kind of sick bastard could ever dream of that?_

_But his slackened hand wove around a tiny slip of paper in his pocket. A crinkled, hand-drawn image of a cartoonish dragon..._

_Mokuba. _

_He would want this for his little brother. _

_The hand clenched._

_He would give whatever it took, loose whatever there was, for his sake._

_The darkness creeping in as a loose canopy; finally overtaking his eyes and the Kaiba son dropped to the floor with a heavy thud._

§

A young man woke with a start, dripping in frigid sweat and for one moment; deep eyes open and raw with emotion. Within one deep breath, though, they were shrouded again in coldness and distance.

_Damn memories. _The current company owner thought before he was fully awake.

His senses piqued, making the long strands on the nape of his neck tense in realization. There was someone else in his room.

No one came in his room except Mokuba, and whoever was in here was hiding in the shadows. Mokuba didn't sulk away; but would crawl up in his bed and seek comfort. The employees didn't have the balls to sneak into his room late at night so who would have...

"Having nightmares, Seto?"

That voice. It came right out of his dream; dribble a little more bitterness and resentment into the pitch. The younger Kaiba tensed, lithe muscle clenching in the gloom.

Gozobora Kaiba, the very image of his haunting past, stepped out of the shadows. He looked particularly smug, dressed in a black suit and standing tall against his former son; wearing navy boxers and half-sitting in his bed.

"How the hell did you get in here?" The teen demanded as soon as he had re-collected his wits.

"About me, perhaps? Do I still frighten you brat?" His eyes glittered maliciously.

Feeling his blood rise, Seto stood tall from his bed, completely comfortable in his sleeping wear. His glare was stone.

"Look old man, you had your chance. You lost. Deal with it."

The former CEO grimaced in fury. "I built you stupid brat; and I can tear you down!"

His son smirked at the rise he was getting. "You didn't give me anything, Gozobora. I won my way here from the orphanage in a chess game. _I_ worked on my lessons in the manor. _I _played your pathetic board members for control of this company._ I_ destroyed your weapon's manufacturing and made this a game company. Kaiba Corp is _mine_."

A man, no matter how powerful; is still just a man. No mortal can become a god, and no god can become a mortal. And every man has his flaws; his tempers and his lovers. No matter how dominating, how suffocating the presence of one can be, there is always a way to break him. All you have to do is find the eye of the dragon, and prod rather harshly.

Gozobora snapped, his hulking frame shaking in hatred and face contorted into it. "You selfish brat! I'll show you some respect!"

However, when you poke the eye of the dragon; it tends to twist around and snap your head off like a bottle cap.

Seto dodged his adoptive father's first blow. He was forced to swerve again from the man's mighty fist. It was an interesting match. Gozobora was larger and stronger, but Kaiba was lithe and quicker. Plus, the older man was riled up and not thinking as clearly while the prodigy was still analytical and cool.

Seto veered left to avoid another punch, catching and opening and sending his own attack back.

The fist connected, but Gozobora had seen the threat at the last minute and managed to avoid most of the damage. He grunted, then kneed Seto in the gut as the younger man collected himself from the punch.

Taking a step back, Seto instinctively doubled-over from the cheap shot. Exploiting his weakness, Gozobora began to fiercely pound him with hefty blows.

Under the rain of fists, Seto managed to put a guard around his vitals all the while still backing towards his door. Once there was more room...

"You are my pupil; you can never beat me!" The attacker roared, gleaming as he pushed his son back farther against the wall.

Glaring up, Seto kept his defensive and took the hits until he felt the scratchy wood of his bedroom door at his back. Sharp eyes found an opening.

Using the door behind him as a lever, he feinted a lunge and then twisted skillfully onto a roundhouse kick.

The foot impacted onto his chest, causing Gozobora to halt in his assault and hiss in pain for a moment. Without waiting, Seto opened turned back to his door, preparing to lead this phantom of his childhood out of the house; away from Mokuba who had fallen asleep downstairs on the couch.

Before he managed to grip the knob, the neutral-colored door burst open and out spilled several men in black suits, brandishing standard issue handguns.

"Mr. Kaiba!" Rolland exclaimed, heading the guards. "Men, get the intruder!"

It was the darkness. The elder Kaiba had retreated back into the shadows of the large room. Rolland didn't recognize him as the former owner of Kaiba Corp.

The employees opened fire, causing the manor to rocket with the sound of gunfire.

His adoptive father snarled and pulled something from within the breast pocket of his jacket. "I'll finish you later, brat."

It was too dark to decipher the object in the said person's hand; but the next moment there was an even greater sound and the entire area filled with a dense fog. The firing ceased instantaneously for fear of hitting their employer.

When the smoke cleared, the attacker was gone.

"Mr. Kaiba, are you hurt sir?" Rolland asked as he put away his firearm.

The businessman felt annoyance run into him again.

_This is the second time that man has been able to infiltrate my home._

"How the hell did he get in here?" The brunette demanded, glaring intensely from his pumped adrenaline.

The head of staff took a step back from his dangerous boss. "I-I don't know sir. We heard a noise coming from your bedrooms so the guards alerted me and—"

_Mokuba!_ The sudden warning reared in the CEO's head. "Where is my brother?"

Without waiting for an answer, the elder sibling strode out of the door and past his uneasy men.

Fear gripped his heart and clenched it painfully. How could he have been so foolish as to let that man escape?

_If anything has happened to him..._

Rounding the corner of his staircase, the dueler came into the room his charge had been practicing duel monsters in. There, curled in the couch and wearing his brother's white trench coat, was the little boy. The gentle rise and fall of his slumbering body reassured him. The cold fingers slid from around his heart. Mokuba was safe.

The older boy slid into the room and sat on the floor, folding his long legs up and narrowing his eyes as the comfort of knowing his brother was safe enveloped him and weariness began to fill him.

_For how long though? What am I going to do when Gozobora comes back?_

A suppressed image came back into his closed eyes. Slender, tawny-haired, smiling...

He frowned as sleep overtook him.

_It seems I may have only one option left._

§

**Three Days Prior to the Break-In:**

Blond curls bounced upon the fine material of her leather coat as she walked briskly across the street. Curving lilac eyes caught the glances towards her tight, exposed midsection as she passed.

Mai Valentine was in Japan.

In fact, she was just walking home from a date with a certain knuckle-brained blond.

_That Wheeler, insisting on walking me home._ The female duelist fumed as she continued her trek.

_As if I'm not capable of taking care of myself. Ha, I could beat his ass any day!_ She passed a group of teens eating lunch and when one of the guys had the audacity to wolf-whistle at her she promptly gave him the finger. How dare that punk interrupt her pondering of a few hours ago. Oh, of course it had only been a usual haunt and a casual walk around the city. Just some catching up of two old friends, but...

_That boy... he's changed._ The woman realized slowly. _Sure he was the same idiot as before but, he was so much more... sensitive. And that look? What was with that look he kept giving me? It was like he was trying to tell me something. But what was it? It's not as though he's the type to be overly-cautious with words._

The purple-eyed vixen stopped, frustration evident on her face as she stomped up and down like a child and threw her arms in the air. "Oh, you stupid boy! Why the hell do you have to be so damn complicat—HEY!"

In the middle of her rant, someone had just pushed roughly past her.

"Oh," The runner said as she turned around. "Sorry."

Mai blinked in surprise. Instead of some arrogant prick of a boy, a well-dressed girl around her own age was standing there. The flush of her cheeks and wind-swept care of her hair were tell-a-tale signs of her run.

Suddenly, footsteps sounded from behind, where the stranger had come from.

The other girl heard the footfall and her amber eyes widened before she turned back and sped off.

"Huh—wait!" Valentine called after her, only to have herself brushed again.

This time it was a man. There was a flash of pale skin, gray eyes, and dark hair before he too was gone.

The blond stood there for a moment, blinking in surprise before...

_Is he... chasing that girl?_

She watched the pair swerve through the mulling people enjoying the pleasant weather. It sure looked that way.

A fire lit deep within the feminist, too used to seeing lesser men taking advantage of weaker women on the streets. Her fist curled and amethyst irises gleamed angrily.

"Hey, bastard!" She began to run after the man.

It was easier to track the woman. Her red-stained hair caught the warming light and glittered among the predominantly dark-haired streets. Swerving, shoving, ducking; Mai pursued them. Living on the streets teaches you about what happens to defenseless teenage girls when faced with dangerous men.

Panting, the woman kept running. She was closing in to the male pursuer... now as long as she cornered him in a busy place...

_The cross-section!_ Seductive, purple eyes spotted the busy intersection of four roads. If she could only reach them by then, it would all be solved.

Putting her last wells of energy into her heels; the young woman managed to pass right in front of the gray-eyed man as he took his first step onto the cross-roads. As they brushed, she slid the purse she was carrying onto his arm before leaping directly into his path, cutting off route to the stranger.

Mai flung her hands up in the middle of the street, successfully causing both the pursuer the pursued, and several rather ticked-off cars to come to an abrupt halt.

"You THIEF!" Valentine exclaimed as several drivers and passer-byes stopped to watch the scene unfolding.

The man's gray eyes dulled, almost from the brightness of madness to a more logical, sane look as he noticed the black handbag suddenly placed around his forearm.

"LOWLIFE, MUGGER, ROBBER!" She was a damn good actor, pointing her finger at the stranger and looking completely wronged. Out of the corner of her eye; she could see that the other woman had stopped running and was presumably watching the event.

"Oh please, _SOMEBODY_ help me!" The foxy creature pretended to have a near-swoon, batting her lashes at several male bystanders.

Two very large and well-built men slammed their doors as they emerged from their car, looking with irritant at the thinner, almost too skinny and white; man with the 'stolen' leather purse. Three other young men menaced forward, all to ready to come to the aid of a 'damsel in distress'.

"This man steal somethin' from you, babe?" A buff, tattooed brunette asked, undressing her with his beady eyes.

The beautiful individual managed to swallow a scathing remark and look demure and indignant. "My purse, he grabbed it from my shoulder and ran away. It hurt too..." She peered at him from slitted eyes. "But surely you one of you strong, muscular gentlemen can get it back for me."

She had them—hook, line, and sinker.

The stranger scowled, then tossed the bag back over to her before turning around sharply.

"Here," He spoke smoothly, darkly.

"Hey buddy, do ya think ya can get away with that?" Brunette's equally muscular and large friend Red demanded, cracking his muscles.

"I'll leave you boys to take care of him for me." The female duelist winked and carefully side-stepped out of the theatrical scene and to the side of the runaway, who was still hovering on the other side of the road.

"Who... Why..." She was pretty, the vixen realized. In a very natural, simple way.

"You just looked like you needed some help. Hot women like us should stick together, after all." The street-smart girl winked.

Her companion shook her head, running a hand through her straight hair. "Thank you but, you shouldn't have gotten involved. It is a... complicated situation."

The violet-eyed blond scoffed and looped arms with the other female. "Life's a bitch, so what? By the way, my name is Mai Valentine. I didn't catch yours..."

The caramel-gazed figure gave a tiny chuckle and smiled, allowing herself to be dragged off. "Kestrel... Kestrel Amun."

§

**Day of the Kaiba Corp break-in:**

Gozobora dragged himself back down to base. Only the artificial lighting of machinery and the imminent darkness of the underground greeted him. Several of Tabat's lackeys were typing away on the mainframe or checking on the GPS or some other menial task the man ordered. He had connections, in that twisted maniacal way of his.

"So I take it you failed to take your son out of the picture." Leon himself was sitting at his chair, not even bothering to meet the eyes of the one he was talking to.

"I would have killed him if not for those damn bodyguards. No one can see me yet." Kaiba heaved in frustration and annoyance.

Gray eyes flickered to him briefly. The insanity seemed replaced, at least momentarily, with an even deadlier clarity.

"I understand. And while we could continue this guerrilla warfare for some time, I am as impatient to reclaim what is mine as you are."

The businessman sat himself in the second swerving chair, head propped up. If there was one thing Leon could do, it was scheme.Kaiba's dark eyes were alight.

"I trust you have a reason for telling me this..."

Tabat grinned, the obsession seeking in again to contort his face. His dark hair contrasted with the pallor of his skin. The bleached color of someone who has spent to much time away from the light of outside. "Our own quarries know us, and they are able to step accordingly. The prey that lives knows its hunter. That is our problem. We are being too predictable."

The former CEO was in no mood to have his flaws propped in plain sight. "What is your point, Tabat?"

The other man shook his head, laughing shortly before his gray orbs reopened and he saw that the madness was once again present. "We should switch. It would make us less predictable. Just think of it as a _Strangers on a Train _remake. Your adoptive son has no idea who I am; much less how I operate. And _my_ bird, _my_ Kestrel; has no knowledge of you or your movements. We could eliminate each other's enemies so that way we both benefit."

The re-created man gave a satisfied smirk. "And all you want me to do is get that woman to come to you?"

Leon matched his features. "She's harder than you think. But don't worry. I can take care of your brat for you."

Gozobora's black eyes glittered with malevolence. "It sounds like another deal, Tabat."

The fair man chuckled. "It does indeed."

Above, in the outside, civilized world; the sun was stolen by gray-colored storm clouds.

§

_Reviewing makes the endorphines go off._


	19. Kidnapped

_Falling from a ladder  
Nothing's safer than the troposphere  
We can find it on our own  
So far away from home, I've been saved  
Vertical inversions  
Caught beneath the clouds  
The sun is always warm down here,  
I've been saved from every ray  
Love can save us with the rays _

_-The Myriad, 'Nothing is Safe'_

§

"This is absolutely ridiculous!" Talla exclaimed, throwing her arms up to the heavens. "It's been _forever _and they still won't even talk to each other! What the hell happened anyways?"

Mokuba shifted uncomfortably as he moved the books he carried from one hand to the other. Why had they chosen to walk home today, again? Oh yeah, Talla. "You know, it isn't like they have been fighting or anything. Remember how they used to bicker?"

The girl flapped her hands. "That's the problem! It's like they're strangers now! Mokuba, they are _our siblings_. That is not how they act!"

The black-haired boy sighed, forced to mentally agree. Seto and Kestrel acting like they sometimes wanted to kill each other; but not as though they didn't know each other. Something big had happened.

"Just give it—"

"It's had time!" Well, only the younger Amun would refute him before he was even finished.

"Look, it's not effecting us really." Equally stubborn, the Kaiba brother pointed out as they rounded the next turn. "We still see each other; and everyone is relatively nice."

She gave him a wild-eyed glare. "Our elders are acting like they come from Mars and you think we're unaffected?"

"Look, I'm worried about them as much as you are." The blue-eyed youth defended with a pointed look. "But we can't force them to like each other."

The brunette scowled, kicking a rock viciously out of the sidewalk before they crossed the street. "We could try."

Her pout almost made her best friend laugh, it was so adorably overrated. However, a looming shadow caused him to pause and suspicions to arise.

The man was cliche—buff, tattooed, shaved, and sporting a long frown.

Mokuba halted, taking a minuscule step back as his self-defense kicked in. This guy was dangerous. Discreetly, he tried to shoot his female friend a message.

Unfortunately, she wasn't receiving.

Sharp chin stuck up, the petite figure responded to the man's sudden presence with a fiery spirit.

"And what the hell could you want?"

The stranger's dark look deepened and his arm muscles rippled with a suggestive movement that made the kid wish to take the damn little sprite and run far, far away.

"You talkin' to me like that, girly?" His voice was gruff, deep, and warning.

It was the afternoon, the middle of broad-daylight. But then again, male student had been shot in similar conditions in a public park.

"I don't see anyone else, twinkletoes." Talla spat, not loosing ground.

Kaiba swallowed and prayed to every god that there was for the girl to suddenly become mute...or the man to loose a few hundred pounds of steely build.

He smirked cruelly. "You're a little spitfire, aren't you?"

"And you're a little ugly; but I didn't point that out."

He chuckled, alarm bells rang in behind a shock of ebony hair while the younger child stayed completely unnerved.

"Haha, you know what I'm here to do to you, cheeky brat?"

The green-eyed girl winked. "Just try it."

A small foot connected squarely with his large shin and the offender went down with a grunt of surprise. Before he could even bat an eyelash, her companion was being yanked hastily away.

"Mokuba, keep running on the main streets until you reach your house. It's the closest."

"What?!" The younger brother gawked at her.

The adoptive daughter had that remorseful, hardened cross upon her visage as they ran hand-in-hand.

"I stood by and watched you get shot once."

They wheeled around a building, panting and speeding with the sound of pursuit heavy on their ears.

"I won't let that happen again." She released his fingers, letting the momentum careen him forward.

"Talla!" He cried, trying to stop himself.

"Keep going Mokuba!" The brunette's tone left no room for argument. "If he catches you; I'll kick your ass myself, now GO!"

There was a flurry of her pink dress and shiny locks; and then the youngest Amun was gone. Racing back to divert a dangerous, grown man.

His hand still outstretched toward where she once stood; the boy fisted his fingers and held the hot tears in as they threatened to spill. With a faint cry, he spun on his heel and dashed towards his manor.

_Stay safe, Talla. Please just wait until I can get to Seto._

And thus started his race through Domino City.

Mokuba dodged through traffic and wove around people; not caring about the dirty looks and calls he received for bumping or shoving. His lungs were smoking, and his legs felt like pincushions; but he forced himself not to slow. Somewhere behind him was his friend with that stranger; and he knew that she wasn't stopping in the least. It was his turn to be strong.

The light switched to green, as he darted through. Brakes screeching and cars honking added to the white noise in his head. The future duelist sprinted along the pavement, feeling a sense of detachment. There was a goal in his head, and everything else was just an obstacle. He had never been so reckless in his life.

There was side-walk under his shoes now; and a bike clipped his hair as the rider barely avoided a collision.

As the runner went past the local market, he ran smack into someone else. This time, however, he fell over. The taste of dirt and mouth filled his mouth. A rock had split his lip. Wiping it and clumsily regaining his feet in a rush; blue eyes spared this obstacle a glance.

"Are you alright?" The woman was striking. Her hair was a dark curtain, eyes a cascade of cocoa, tall and impossibly shaped form underneath a dainty dress.

He regained his breath some-what and felt fear nip his heart at the thought of Talla. What that evil man could do to such a pretty little girl... Guilt raised his adrenaline again and he moved his feet to a launching position.

"Sorry," It was a barely-legible rush of letters.

But then a delicate, manicured hand touched his shoulder caressingly.

"I'm sorry to intrude," It was Beautiful again; with concern in her lovely curved eyes. "But if it's an emergency; I can drive you."

The figure with bushy-black hair paused. Under normal circumstances, he would have said that it was stupid to just get into a car, threaten the person with his name and the police, and walk away. But he needed to get home. To find Seto and save Talla. He couldn't be worried about himself right now. Besides, this lady seemed nice, offering him a ride after he had rudely shoved her. Nice, and non-threatening with her photographic smile and slim arms and legs.

"Thanks, but we have to hurry."

She smiled and nodded, jogging towards her car. The male tugged ahead of her, reaching the door and stepping anxiously as he waited for her to unlock the red two-seater with leather interior. As he turned away, she tilted the frilly collar up to her sensuously-shaped lips. There was a small microphone attached.

"Target caught. Delivering him now."

§

Steely azure eyes shot up once more to the 'customer'; he used the term quite liberally. In fact, it was a woman. The daughter of one of his shareholders, or else she would have been escorted out the moment of entry. As it was; the human ice-cube was forced to endure the entirely too old pick-ups and flirtations.

She was young and beautiful; those were both nearly undeniable facts. Leggy and slim with an ample chest and delicate, aristocrat features. Curly russet hair fell gracefully around a beaming smile. All of that and she was wearing a cropped dress. It would have worked on any other man, really.

However, the last thing Kaiba cared about; was the slut that just walked in his door. In fact, he was making a point of ignoring her.

"So Seto, do you mind if I call you Seto?" Flip of the hair, nibble on the lip.

The blue orbs did not turn again to meet her as he curtly replied. "Yes."

"Oh," After a pause, she giggled it off. Oh god, a giggler. "Well then, Mr. Kaiba, yes that does sound better."

_Silence sounds great._ The CEO's inner persona chimed as he determinedly focused on his laptop.

The girl continued without any encouragement; her own little body of confidence. "My father brought me here to broaden my horizons. Such a silly old man, isn't he?"

_Or a vindictive one. _"Hn," Attention to the screen; let the pest go, let the pest go...

"So I was wondering if you could possibly give me a tour of your company, Mr. Kaiba. It would be a great honor." Doe-like eyes begged him for way more than a tour.

_Let it go, just let it go. This is for the good of the company. _The number one bachelor gritted his teeth and granted the scantly-clad annoyance with his infamous death glare. "Of course. Rolland can take you to put away your effects and collect refreshments before we begin."

The man obediently stepped forward from the shadows of the doors and held his hand out in a leading gesture.

"If you will only follow me this way, Miss."

She shot his employer a telltale wink, "I can't await, Mr. Kaiba,"; before exiting the room.

Rolland glanced back, hesitating at the young man rubbing his temples testily. "She is quite attractive, Sir."

The brunette glared at his head of staff. "I wasn't aware my personal life was mentioned in your job application."

The suited man shifted in discomfort. "My apologies sir. It won't happen again." He turned to leave.

"Besides," The duelist murmured to himself. "I don't like dark hair."

Almost in half-surprise at the comment, Seto recollected himself. Long fingers reached over to his cell phone. The number he wanted was on speed dial.

He'd try her work first.

"Mikagi Corp, how may I help you?" The chipper voice of the secretary greeted him.

"This is Seto Kaiba," He made sure to pour scowl onto his tone. "I need to speak with Ms.Amun."

Apparently, this one had a bit of backbone as she didn't squawk at the sound of his voice.

"I am afraid Ms. Amun isn't in right now. May I take a message?"

_Yeah, show up to your damn work._ "No."

The businessman clicked his line off and dialed another number.

"Hello?" An accent clung to the voice.

"Montague, this is Kaiba. I need to speak with Ms. Amun."

Click.

Seto scowled. _That woman is always there when you want her to go away, but the moment you need her it seems she vanishes off the earth._

§

As she fixated on her the bubbling chemicals, her senses stretched behind her to where the unexpected _guests_ stood like a desert tree. As the vial in the liquid turned blue, her trained hands used tongs like an extension to submerge it into the vat of liquid nitrogen. There was a hiss, and then the vat door closed so she could dial in the time. The woman wiped her hands on a decorative towel before turning to smile at the two figures behind her.

"I am sorry, but I cannot put aside the testing of chemical compounds or else many days worth of work will go to waste." The medic beamed both of them. "So what may I help you gentlemen with?"

Gentlemen was a grossly overused word on her part. The two tall, burly men in her personal lab now looked more like henchmen then should be fairly possible. And the mildly uneducated, angry look on their faces led her to believe they probably were. Well, that was fine. Amun wasn't an idiot, and whoever had been stupid enough to be this obvious really wasn't her main concern right now.

"Our employer," The taller one with a skull-tattoo peaking from his collar spoke. "would like to discuss something of mutual interest with you."

_Oh, I am too sure._ The businesswoman kept up politely interested visage. "Who is your employer, may I inquire?"

A telltale shuffle ran through them both, pointed signs to the trained medical-analysis eye. "He works within Kaiba Corp."

Kestrel had to withhold a blink of surprise. _Seto? He wouldn't send goons over here. _"Could I have a name, please?"

This time the shorter, stockier one with a shaved head responded to her inquiry. "Gozobora. He has information pertaining to the shooting of Mokuba Kaiba, and would like to speak with the doctor who treated him."

A siren went off within Kestrel's head; so blazingly that she almost wondered why the two men didn't hear them too.

Kaiba had refused to tell her about any possible enemies who may have shot Mokuba. _Inside the company—is there a takeover being planned? _The implications buzzed in her thoughts. However, one strand stood out against the others.

_These people shot Mokuba._

There had been very little information disclosed on the case due to Seto's, **ahem,** influence over the media. And the park had been emptied where the children had been. Her medical staff were all checked out and accounted for so that left... the shooters.

The CEO had no idea who Gozobora was, but she was damn sure that meeting the man was not good for her health. Carefully, the young woman kept her face schooled.

"My, he does know a lot. Allow me to gather my coat and you can drive me to your Mr. Gozobora."

Neither stranger seemed happy to let their tawny-haired target leave the room, but they reluctantly agreed.

Giving a small bow, the adoptive mother stepped purposefully out the room. Once out of sight, she dove into her coat for the tiny silver device in its pocket. With steady hands, Amun opened the cell phone and rapidly typed out a short message to upstairs.

_Trouble. Call Security._

As her thumb pressed send, an ominous presence made the hair on her nape stand and the amber-eyed girl froze.

"That was a mistake." It was Skull-Man; crunching his fist and sneering.

Slowly, the blond straightened up, keeping her back toward them. "You know, crunching your knuckles causes water to fill into the joints and causes them to expand due to the pressure. You really shouldn't do that."

"Eh?" He gave her a dumb look. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

Her reply was a swift kick in the groin.

§

He felt himself mentally shudder again as her hand _accidentally_ brushed his. For the tenth time during the tour. Scowl deepening, the handsome man did not react otherwise.

"Over here is the production area. It is where the ideas and blue-prints have been finally realized and the parts and imported into that chamber—" Their all-to-uppity tour guide narrated so the pair could walk without intrusion.

"This really was quite kind of you, Mr. Kaiba." Anna, that was her name. Annabella.

She sidled over to him, narrowing her large, curving eyes seductively. "I wish there was some way I could repay you."

_Leave now._ His thoughts were sour behind blue eyes. "It is merely a thanks to your father. He is a very generous man."

If Anna was ever put-off from the his frigidness, the beauty never showed it. "He has always been rather good to us; allowing me to make my own decisions."

_Which is why you act like a brain-washed lapdog._

"Hm,"

"And if you look just behind the glass paneling you can spot our team of testers for the prototypes—"

Apparently, even a slut could reach hr limit as the beating became closer to the bush. "You know, Mr. Kaiba; there is another reason I came here, other than your fantastic tour."

_To sleep with me, I know. Grand, grand. _Inside the pant's pocket of his white business suit, he fingered the hard shell of a phone.

_Where is that damn woman?_

"You see, someone very dear to me asked me to come her and deliver a message to you."

_Why isn't she answering her cell phone? What could be keeping her that preoccupied. _Frankly, Seto didn't care what this girl's plans were to seduce him; he wasn't interested.

"But I can hardly do that with you not listening to me, right Mr. Kaiba." Doe brown eyes were shining with laughter, but there was almost something... wrong with Anna's brilliant smile.

Caught wandering, the CEO mentally berated himself and gave a small nod. "I trust you have a point?"

Her smile widened. "Yes, Mr. Kaiba. One of great relevance to you."

The brunette frowned, lining his smooth brow. "Then why don't you just say it?"

The whore nodded in earnest agreement. "You see, my lord... my life, is named Leon Tabar. Remember that name, Mr. Kaiba; as it will prove fiercely useful soon. You see, he is the one who sent me."

"To do what?" Arms crossed, tall and lean; his figure was intimidating.

That smile was almost... mad.

"Right before we reach our exit, I would like to point out the back room. It is the dark room, used for certain chemical manufacturing—"

"To inform you that you have to play his game with Ms. Amun. You must, or else Mr. Mokuba is finished."

Anna giggled behind her hand. "But don't worry. Ms. Amun will listen because Miss Talla is with one of my lord's allies. And all you have to do is cooperate. This is your warning, Mr. Kaiba."

Before anyone could react, the pretty face had whipped a sharp object from the sleeve of her shirt; driving it into her own dainty chest.

Crimson squirted sickly, staining the frilly, short white dress and coloring her still-grinning face. It reddened his white jacket and pants. Almost burning with heat, a few drops skid across his cheekbone. Her whitening hand plunged the weapon into his hand, slicing thick skin between thumb and finger in the process.

Seto was speechless, dead girl leaning against him; murder weapon clenched in his hands, and cardinal rapidly scratching its way onto the entire scene.

The tour guide turned around, beaming expression plummeting faster than stocks in the 1920's.

"Oh gods, she's dead!" The man screamed, sprinting out of the hallway and back into the main lobby.

The businessman was left with the body, not making a sound.

_"You have to play his game with Ms. Amun. You must, or else Mr. Mokuba is finished._"

Mokuba.

They had Mokuba.

§

"I asked for security to escort these men to the police office; not to beat them to pieces." His young employer reprimanded gently. "I can take care of myself, Montague."

The gun-wielding security men were dragging to black-and-blue figures out of the room, purposely barging their prone forms into solid objects. There was a small spatter of blood on the floor from their short skirmish which ended when the gunfire began. The two assailants were alive—hopefully.

The paternal figure bowed solemnly, the dark glitter of his eyes betraying the appearance. "Of course you can Ms. Amun. However, I disliked the look of those brutes. Forgive my harshness, personal bias against IQ levels below 60."

The honey-eyed woman chortled. "I am all too sure. Now, have you seen my cell phone lying around anywhere? I thought I heard it beeping while we were fighting."

"Between all those war-cries you must have made? Yes, I think I see it on the floor over there."

Smiling, Kestrel spotted the dark metallic sheen against the alabaster backdrop. She stopped over to pick it up, loosing the happy upturn of lips at the blinking green light.

"My voice mail is full. I wonder who called all those times."

_Seto, _"Mr. Kaiba?"

The Latino behind her suddenly scrunched his nose, as if choking down some bitter solution. "Ah yes, that imperialistic swine called for you earlier today. I didn't feel the need to connect him."

She smiled at his protectiveness, a sorrowful; old look. "There is no need to screen my calls, Montague. I'd take Mr. Kaiba over most men any day."

"Well whatever it was, apparently it had importance for him to take the time to send you all those calls;so you may as well respond." The older man connoted sourly.

"I agree." The tawny-haired medic ended the debate as she speed-dialed the said person.

The other line rang one and a half times before it was hastily picked up. Both his diction and tone alerted the young woman to trouble.

"Amun, where the fuck are you?"

"My work. We had a little trouble. Why? Is there anything wrong?"

"It's about our kids."

"Talla and Mokuba?"

"I can't explain over the phone. Drive down to the central park and meet me at the fountain now. Don't delay."

Click,

And now that fiery creature was alone and able to think.

_Talla... Has something happened to her? And little Mokuba too! Those men appearing... something wrong with the kids... Can this just be a coincidence, or is there someone pulling all the strings? _

Distractedly, Kestrel exited the room and left a baffled and worried Montague in her wake. She signaled her driver over with a quick wave.

"The nearest park."

_Leon? Would Leon go this... yes. He has no limits._

She ducked quickly into the car and distantly watched the scenery change out of the window.

_But, can he? Even Leon is only human. Do his resources really go this far?_

All the while a sickening concoction of dread, dolloped with guilt; squirmed inside of her. Everything was moving too slow, she had somehow failed them.

Both Mokuba and Talla could be harmed because of her.

Amber eyes slid shut.

_"I... I love it, you know." Her arms were wrapped around herself to ward of the invisible._

_He turned half-way to her in the dark, not speaking._

_"Freedom...my right to chose and to live." She explained, gazing sadly and glassily._

_"But," Her throat chocked with the impact of the words, almost trying to prevent them. "It costs too much. I am not willing to pay with the blood of people I care for."_

_"You would become a martyr then?" He finally spoke, filled with anger, perhaps._

_She turned to him. "I won't watch people die anymore. I can't. If there is a way to stop this, then I must take it. No matter what, I will protect them from now on!"_

_"No matter what? This will cost your very soul, girl." No, he was regretful._

_She smiled sadly. "Better mine then someone else's."_

_§_

Seto Kaiba resisted the urge to pace as he drummed his fingers against his thigh. The white trench coat billowed around him with a sudden wind. It was dusk in the park—drops of gold lined the trees, an occasional rock caught the light to sparkle, the water splashed brilliant oranges and splattered back out, ivory stone turned to burnished bronze—but his blue eyes took in none of it.

Thunder roared in this distance and a strand of lightening broke the gathering darkness and gray-violet sky. A chill filled the air. There was a storm running this way.

The watcher felt another presence before he actually saw it. Familiar, a beacon of warmth and hurt, a paradox onto itself in fiery honeys and warm sienna. Her heels clicked softly on the stone, face painted by dusk and worry.

"What has happened, Mr. Kaiba?" Her step was encouraging, comforting perhaps.

Except for the fact that he was an independent ice block. And yet the name, it almost stabbed him in the gut for some unfathomable reason. Cold eyes swept over her figure in the evening light.

"You are one of the most frustrating people I have ever met, Ms. Amun." He began, "But it seems that we must work together for a common cause."

"Mokuba and Talla?" The blond inquired, anxious.

"A psychopath came into my building today. I am assuming you had something of the like happen?"

She nodded, rocking back-and-forth on the balls of her feet. "Two men, they said that they were from a Mr. Gozobora."

Only a steeled mask kept the adoptive son from exploding at this new piece of information. Instead, he drew in a long, steadying breath.

_Of all the people to be involved in my past. Why her?_

"He's my stepfather; an imperialistic prick with ridiculous notions as I am sure you have discovered." His tone clearly closed any further touching upon that subject. However, the woman would have pursued if not for his next line. "The woman came from a Tabar, is that familiar?"

She twitched, just barely and only her left pinky. "Leon Tabar, yes I guessed it was so. We are... old acquaintances."

The duelist didn't press the issue. They were vague pictures, but legibly drawn.

"So our two enemies have joined forces and taken our siblings." The tawny-haired individual summed, keeping the edge of wariness barely at bay.

"And I think you can guess what that means." _I may not like the damn wretch, but I need her. Leon Tabar came up with nothing in our databases. And if Gozobora is in on this... Mokuba has to be rescued._

Amun nodded firmly. "We have to do the same, become comrades-in-arms. For their sakes." _I am so sorry, Seto. I tried to protect you and your brother, but I guess I let go a little too late. _

"Then let's get to work."

**§**

**Every review creates another color in the RAINBOW!**


	20. Fugitives

_Where did she go?_

_Where did she go from here?_

_The last time I saw her_

_She made all the clouds disappear_

_She said, with a smile,_

_Yeah the weather's alright_

_She left her coat at home that night._

_Where do I begin today?_

_Where do colors never fade?_

_In the sunshine, in the rain_

_it's quite the same_

_It's never going to change._

-'Looking for Jane' performed by Roxette

§

_She may have been only a friend to him, but she was undeniably beautiful in the moonlight—golden hair cast lighter, skin molten brass, eyes aflame with life, slender frame silhouetted. But it wasn't her. It wasn't wild, crazy, free Kakra who dared Ra himself to come down and smite her. And that ruined it for him, because he loved Kakra, she was his sister in crime;his anchor to himself against the sea of etiquette and propriety.._

_He drew a breath, ready to step from the shadows to confront her._

_"I take it you're not out here to enjoy the night." Seth melted from the entranceway, surprising both him and the woman as she turned swiftly on her heels. It took a moment to plaster a fake smile and bow in greeting._

_"High Priest, how are you this evening?" A model noblewoman, everything Kakra shouldn't be._

_Seth frowned, an elegant scowl formed on his face. "Cut the formalities, Kakra."_

_Her smile slid a little, and her eyes softened with some contemplative softness. "Forgive me, Seth. It is just that I am only returning to my studies as a priestess and you are already the—"_

_His fist slammed against the sandstone arch beside them; cold blue eyes alight. Their spy jumped. He had never seen his cousin so aroused. _

_"That has nothing to do with it and you know it!" Seth spat the words between clenched teeth. He advanced the few feet between himself and the other figure. "You've been like this since the...since you've recovered." _

_It had been the smallest hesitation, the slightest slip of the tongue. But he had heard it, and she certainly had then._

_"Ever since I was claimed, you mean." Kakra's reply was in a hushed tone._

_"That wasn't real. He forced you." The priest was emotionless again, except for his shaking left hand whose knuckles were a beacon of white under the moonlight._

_The blond shook her head. "It did happen, whether I had any consent or not. It was real, Seth." She was trembling a little, full-out and small._

_There was a faint lull, and then the young man did the most unexpected thing that night. He bridged the gap between their two bodies and forcibly embraced her slighter figure. _

_The pharaoh suckered in breath in shock. It had been the first time the two former lovers touched since the return of Kakra. He had ever thought the ice prince would be the one to initiate it though. This was a moment, he knew, and he probably shouldn't be watching from the darkness. But if he left now, they might hear him and the mood would break. So he stayed, hardly breathing; as a silent watcher._

_Her body tensed at the contact, and at first she tried to pull away. Seth held her, possessively and desperate._

_"Whatever he did to you doesn't matter anymore. Because now you are here." He spoke, using that no-argument tone onto the top of her hair. _

_Kakra stopped struggling, and her weight shifted so she was completely leaning against her lover, hands wrapped around his waist and face buried in his chest. And for the first time since returning, she cried mutely into the cloth of his night robe. The taller man said nothing, and made no movement as the young woman wept. _

_"I will kill him. I will make him suffer and let shadows feast off his black heart. I want the very vultures to stray away from his carcass because it is so tortured." _

_"No," She finally spoke, her voice muffled in his chest. "Don't Seth, please." Finally, Kakra broke the hold, stepping back so his arms only touched her sides. Her irises were honey, sweet with love and longing and **hurt**. "I fear what he would do to you. You must not go after him Seth!"_

_The man grew angry. "Do you think I'm a coward? I am the High Priest! I wield the Millennium Rod!" He whipped out the golden item from his belt. "And you assume some pagan criminal can stand with me?!"_

_Kakra replied with the same level of fire. "Do you think I would let myself be violated by a normal man? Do you think I am that pathetic, Seth—some maiden of the wealth you cannot defend herself! Am I **that **inferior in your eyes?"_

_The High Priest was one of the few people who could stand toe-to-toe with the rogue woman when she was furious. _

_"What is he, a god? I would rip the wings off Osiris himself if he had done this to you!" He hissed._

_She didn't reply for a moment, surprised a bit by the proclamation. "... That was blasphemous."_

_He crossed his arms. "Hm,"_

_"I guess that means I'm rubbing off on you..." The Egyptian woman cracked a delicate grin and the man unfolded his arms so she could lean against him again. They came to rest on her shoulders and they stood like that for a moment, just breathing._

_"Seth," She broke the silence, kissing his neck lightly. "Do this for me. I've had enough of that man." Her lips touched his skin again, lingering when there was no reaction again. "Give up your vengeance, nothing good can come of it." _

_This time, her tongue flickered out and he let the softest sound escape his lips, grip tightening around her shoulders. _

_"I never said I was good, and you're the furthest thing from it... Stop trying to seduce me, It's hard to talk!" He snapped as she began to suck at his throat, making his voice go hoarse._

_Amber-hued eyes glittered with mischievous. "**Trying** to seduce you? My dear High Priest, I **am** seducing you. Soon you will be a servant of my love." She moved up, to kiss his lips and put her fingers to work; sketching designs on his chest and circles through his hair._

_He was trying so hard to stay angry with her. "Pagan wench, stop this so we can have an actual—" _

_Seth had lost. He knew the moment his robe parted around his abdomen, where the woman had skillfully maneuvered her hand to stroke up and down the lean muscle. Growling, the brunette shoved her against the stone wall and finally returned her ministrations. He always did like control. In the middle of her neck, the priest remembered a bit of himself._

_"Tomorrow," His voice was stern, if unusually husky. "We will finish this conversation."_

_Still, Kakra smiled. She had won this night._

_§_

Yugi sat up, and immediately flushed in the darkness as the dream came back to him. He sat up in his room, pushing the covers back and cradling his head. "I'm starting to think these things are just dreams, too Yami. I mean, Kaiba was just... he doesn't get like that."

Yami's translucent image came into view in the shadows, chuckling. "Now how do you know that? Have a camera in his room?"

The boy felt himself grow hotter. "Yami, really!"

The pharaoh smiled at the boy's innocence. He forgot sometimes, that his host was just a child—even an exceptional one. "They're not just dreams, Yugi. They are memories of my past; and there is something we have to prevent from happening again."

The modern-day male nodded. "Her rape. I couldn't let that happen to anyone. But how do we stop it?"

"I think the High Priest had a fairly good idea, minus the sadism." The phantom answered.

Mouto blinked, letting confusion roll through his bond with the young(sorta) man.

"Kestrel is too stubborn for us to help so..." He eluded.

The spiky-haired mortal snapped his fingers. "We have to find the perpetrator. But, Yami, that's nearly impossible. We don't have a name, a visual... nothing."

"No, but we know who to watch." The crimson-eyed individual responded smugly.

The duelist felt the answer project itself from his partner's mind and nearly choked.

"You want to follow Kaiba? Are you suicidal Yami?"

"You would rather follow Kestrel and wait for something to happen to her?"

... "He's going to murder us."

§

They sat, side by side at one of his titanium desks.

"We should try to track Talla first." Amun said as she scanned through the documents, vanilla folders, and washed-out maps strewn onto the surface between them.

He looked up, glaring. "And why is that?"

The tawny-haired individual let out a deep breath, resisting the urge to pinch the bridge of her nose. _Patience._ "Because Leon will send a letter or message about Mokuba and we can tail then when he does. Until then, our best chance to find the kids is to follow Talla."

Frowning at her logical argument, and unable to counter it, Seto looked back down at the personal financial records of his stepfather. Any frequented places of stay were highlighted and marked on the map of Japan they had.

Kestrel was checking the latest police reports—even the slightest unsolved accident was registered to be looked at. The silence was filled with only the rustle of papers and the scratching of pens. Suddenly, the medic paused with a dazed expression on her face.

"Mr. Kaiba, do you have anything of your stepfather's?"

Unconsciously, the brunette grated his teeth at the title. "No, it was all destroyed. Why?"

The dimming of her eyes was the only thing to reveal disappointment. "I thought we could have Dante track the scent..."

"And I assume you have nothing of Tabar's." The CEO responded in a clip tone, which she disregarded with a shake of her head.

"No, that would have been far too convenient."

Another pause in between words as they both set to work.

"How may places to you have so far?"

The elder brother was sending for espresso soon, before his head burst. "Thirteen."

"I have five reports, none of which seem too promising." The young woman admitted.

The duelist felt self-loathing build up like a fire inside his veins. He had been unable to protect his little brother _again. _Even more than that, that bastard Gozobora had outsmarted him. Seto had spent his entire youth fighting against his stepfather, and the take-over of Kaiba Corp should have proven that he was superior to his teacher. But now, that man had risen from the grave to come haunt him. He had gotten careless, relaxed. The fact that Gozobora was eve alive was proof of that.

"Mr. Kaiba," Amun interrupted his mental berating and he shot her a look that clearly stated that.

She gave a small smile that didn't meet the tightness of her brow. "Getting angry at yourself will not help anyone. I am sure that Mokuba is alright."

The teen felt his fraying string of temper being burned off the wick. He curled his hands and all but growled back.

"Alright? He's been kidnapped by some maniacal nutcase who you were _acquainted_ with, Amun. I hardly consider that fine!"

Instead of rebuking him fiercely as he would have expected, the adoptive mother lidded her eyes and bowed her head.

"My apologies, Mr.Kaiba. I never intended to endanger you or your brother. But I am sure he will be unharmed and we will be able to rescue him." When she looked up she was smiling with some emotion jingling just between her features that he couldn't quite name...

"I promise that I will return Mokuba to you safely. No matter what the cost may be, Mr. Kaiba." ...It was regret.

Hiding his surprise, the blue-eyed man scowled. "He's my brother and I can take care of him..."

A moment of silence passed.

"...Besides, my bastard stepfather took your girl."

It was the closest he would come to an understanding and acceptance; but the honey-eyed woman seem to grasp its meaning as she nodded with a little upturn of the lips that wasn't as plastic.

§

Mai fidgeted her legs, moving the slender cylinders of enticing ginger in a silent rhythm under the table.

Joey smiled at her behind his soda, and put the drink down with a strangely bright look in his hazel orbs. "What, are you nervous or something?"

The blond felt her eye twitch. "By what, you? Ha! Puppies are more intimidating then you, Wheeler!"

Instead of rebuking her as normal, the boy just sipped from his drink. "Uh-huh."

It was their second unofficial date and he still managed to boggle her. The boy she had left was heartbroken, reckless, and headstrong. The one she had just found was... careful, almost. And sincere. She wasn't sure if she liked _him_ or not.

But she was Mai, and so she pouted in response. "What, dog got your tongue?"

Wheeler sat his cup down; giving her an odd look. "You know, trying to act like that stuck of prick really isn't attractive."

The blond woman jumped. "And why the hell would I want to be attractive for you?"

"Of course," Her companion continued. "You look good no matter what, so I guess it doesn't matter."

_That_ shut her up.

Startled, Mai settled back down into her chair; glancing away to hide a creeping blush.

_Is this really Joey. He seems so..._

"Oh, is little Mai-Mai embarrassed?"

Predictably, Valentine smacked him across the head for the tease. She huffed; sticking her nose into the air. "And here I was just going to say that you'd grown, stupid."

The hazel-eyed youth stopped rubbing his head to blink in surprise. "You think I've grown up?"

One violet eye peaked out at him. "Just a little... you were an utterly helpless idiot before and now you're just a foolish little puppy... Still, I guess it's an improvement.

Joey lunged forward, resorting back to his old self. "Hey, who are you calling an idiot you dumb blond?!"

Mai met him, craning her neck across the table to glare front-up. "You're a blond too; twit!"

"Self-absorbed freak woman!"

"Whining little puppy!"

"Queen of the Ugly-Bird things!"

"They're harpies, you dolt!"

"They're U-G-L-Y too!"

"Ha, better than you're baby dragon. What, were you trying out for daddy dare care or something when you bought it?"

"Well, if I recall—my pathetic dragon wiped the floor with your old hags."

"That was sheer luck, and you know it, damn it!"

"No it wasn't! I'm more skilled then you. Admit it!"

"I'd rather jab a spoon down my throat!"

"See, you're just a sore loser!"

"Oh, shut it Wheeler!"

"Mai's a sore loser, Mai's a sore loser!"

"Grr... I beat you the second time!"

And just like that, the banter died. The female duelist wished she could swallow her words back up in the silence. She had brought up painful memories for them both.

_Stupid..._

Dartz, the Seal, his eyes... There was no doubt in her mind that that night, he had been fighting for her. He had felt something for her.

Just like when he protected her from Marik

and from the thieves of Duelist Kingdom.

Because for some reason, it seemed like she was always the damsel in distress and he was always her unlikely knight.

But Mai Valentine was a street girl; she didn't believe in fairy tales.

If she did though...

"Hey...Joey," Her voice was softer, purple eyes downcast.

Joey looked up. "Yeah?"

The blond beauty clenched her hands under the table; whitening the knuckles. "Why... Why did you do it all those times?"

Wheeler blinked. "Do what?"

Valentine suckered in breath, forcing herself to make eye contact again. "Save me... all those times; from Ra and that ghost-man at Duelist Kingdom and even the last time...from myself. Why... Why do you save me; no matter—" Her long, colored fingernails dug into the flesh of her palm. "how I treat you?"

A faint breeze stirred her hair, pushing it in front of her eyes as the young woman sat in apprehension. The sound of a chair scraping against cement reached her ears with fear. Was he leaving? Did he realize she wasn't worth it and was walking out before—

A warm, gentle hand reached out for the golden locks; pulling them carefully behind her ear and lingering for a moment at the curve of her cheek. Looking up, the street-rat seemed impossibly tall and... attractive with the wind touching his unruly sandy hair and congenial brown eyes.

"You should know the answer by now, Mai." The tenderness in his voice stuck her dumb.

Mai swallowed, and Joey removed his hand; giving her a little half-grin before turning around and walking away.

The diva felt panicked, watching his retreating back. She stumbled out of her chair. "H-Hey!"

Her friend kept walking; giving her a wave. "Next Saturday, you're pick, okay?"

Purple eyes blinked. "O-Okay..." Mai slouched back down in her seat, feeling her thoughts whorl around. "Okay..."

§

"We have a problem," Kestrel announced after she darted into the room with Montague quick on her heels; latched the door with a click and turned back around to face him. All this, and she had only gone to get coffee.

Seto looked up from his work. _We have several. _"What now?"

"This!" The Latino serving man slammed a tiny, full-color television atop of their charts and papers.

Kaiba turned his attention to the small box; listening to the current program: The Domino News.

_"This special broadcast focuses on the breaking news that has just reached our news station through a verified source. It has just been discovered that in the criminal investigation of the sudden death of inheritress turned runway model Anna Cauldwell..." _

"A friend of mine is an officer and he leaked it to the press in hopes of getting the news to me before I was taken in as a suspect." Kestrel filled in. "He just called."

The photograph posted on-screen made the man's stomach clench.

Dark hair, secret smile... it was Annabella from his tour yesterday. The beautiful messenger of a deranged man. The girl who stabbed herself.

_"After the police investigation last night and forensic testing; our resources say all conducive evidence points to a popular icon; the last man to see Ms. Cauldwell—Seto Kaiba."_

His gut hit the floor and the muscle in his neck tightened as he listened intently.

_"Mr. Kaiba was giving the beautiful woman a tour of his establishment when the knife was pulled and stabbed her in the left lung; puncturing it and filling it up with blood until th victim drowned. While his head of staff has testified that it was Ms. Cauldwell who stabbed herself; the fingerprints on the weapon are an identical match to Mr. Kaiba's..."_

_**"To inform you that you have to play his game with Ms. Amun. You must, or else Mr. Mokuba is finished."**_

_**There was a thick slicing sound; and everything was doused in red.**_

The CEO forced his thoughts out of the memory; focusing on the here and now at stake. Montague had the presence of mind to switch off the tiny TV. All eyes focused on him.

"What happened Mr. Kaiba?" The woman urged without any suspicion.

"What the hell does that mean? You think I killed the damn girl!" He replied furiously.

"No," The doctor kept her practiced professional cool. "However I doubt the police will have such a considering trust. You can get above petty laws with your money, Mr. Kaiba—but this girl was good money too. These charges won't just disappear. Anything you might know would be helpful."

"I told you everything I knew about her," The blue-eyed boy admitted bitterly. "I have no idea how she got past security with a knife."

"You sure it just wasn't a crime of passion. What, with a bigot like you having a pretty woman not interested—" Montague was cut off my his employer before a major fight could erupt.

"Montague, we have enough enemies at this moment without you. I trust Mr. Kaiba and I hope you do too." The clip tone of her voice lowered a little as she looked deeply at her Chief-of-Staff. "We'll need your help."

The middle-aged man frowned. "Help, with what?"

The brunette was already loading the map and financial reports into a large leather briefcase. "Running from the police; you stupid man. They'll hit here next. It was obviously a set-up from Tabar to make it harder for me to track my brother. I don't have time to deal with clearing my name right now." He shut the case with a faint grunt.

The balding butler opened his mouth to protest, and was stopped short by the younger woman. "My friend, bite your this once for me."

Montague eyed the object of his loathing and loyalty for a moment and in the end his better nature one out. He sighed. "I'll hold them off as long as I can. In the meantime, here are the keys to your hybrid. It will attract the least attention."

The man opened up a designer purse and began to throw various items into it with the help of the blond. The keys, a credit card, a wad of cash, photo id, and a handful of MVP and VIP cards.

"If you go into hiding; you're the next suspect." The Spaniard reminded her while walking the pair out of the room to a concealed door. He pushed the keypad to open it.

"I know," Kestrel admitted. "but this is our problem now. I'm wound in it either way."

Seto paused, glancing over to her at the show of intent loyalty and keeping silent.

The trio passed through the hidden doorway into the car garage. A fairly standard silver hybrid car was their destination. Montague turned around, handing the purse over to his Mistress. He sighed as she threw it over her shoulder; inhaling deeply.

"And Kestrel," It was a rare time Montague addressed her by her first name. "do try and be careful."

The businesswoman gave him a warm smile and a friendly peck on each cheek. "Feed Dante for me. He tends to get depressed if both Talla and I are gone."

"Ah," The man agreed, turning to Kaiba with a quick scowl. "And you, little white prince,"

"What?" Seto snapped as he loaded the suitcase along with his silver laptop case into the back of the car.

"Watch out for her." Montague demanded with folded arms.

The duelist halted for a moment; and it seemed that there was less malice then usual in the older man's dark glare.

"Hm, whatever," The CEO replied finally; getting into the passenger seat.

Steely blue eyes watched as the stout Latino walked briskly back through the door, sealing it behind him and prepared to face the burning press and angry police. Finally, the secret door to the garage sealed shut and he focused forward once again.

They were moving forward, driving out to the thin streak of blue.

Fugitives from the law. Him for a murder he didn't commit, and her for aiding his escape.

Seto glanced over at his driving companion; feeling some of his detachment fade away and unable to grasp it no matter how hard his attempts.

_Amun... she didn't have to come. She could have stayed and cleared her name. It would be easier for her to find Talla that way..._

The tawny hair glimmered like gold as the strong sunlight hit it, and her kissed skin deepened with the brightness of her honey eyes.

"So, Mr.Kaiba;" Her sweet, congenial voice caught him from his introverted speculations and he frowned.

"Hm?"

Kestrel shot him a quick look, a playful smile playing at the corner of her lips as she steered the car. "Where to first?

§

AHHHHHHHH, Sorry about the delay. I didn't die... or get abducted by Martians. It was just life taking up writing time. But don't worry; this story WILL BE FINISHED! If my corpse has to sit at this computer and type away; it will be done. So, REVIEW to let me see who stuck with me, would you?


	21. Mr and Mrs

_I changed my color for you  
I shed my coat with caution  
I lack the beauty you display  
See here there are the bruises  
And some were self-inflicted  
And some showed up along the way  
So I nod my head  
I'm ready for the world to see  
The secret I kept here inside the man you thought id be  
Slip into coma calm  
The coma where I calm myself down  
Here comes excuses why I let you down_

Stand by for another breakdown  
Sound off the alarm  
Is this the chameleon boy I swore I wouldn't become  
Chameleon boy  
Chameleon boy

So now we've come upon the hardest thing I've ever done  
Its telling you that I'm a mess  
That sort of mess I mean  
Is self-destructive gasoline  
The kind that strips you of your best  
And while I play the way that most would end up dead  
You sleep alone at home and wish that I was in our bed  
With this I'm telling you  
My color changes back to blue  
How do I ask you this  
Will you help me through

Stand by for another breakdown  
Sound off the alarm  
Is this the chameleon boy I swore I wouldn't become  
Stand by for another breakdown  
Sound off the alarm  
Is this the chameleon boy I swore I wouldn't become  
Chameleon boy  
Chameleon boy

-'Chameleon Boy' performed by Blue October

§

Yugi Mouto was frantic.

No, actually he had been frantic an hour ago when he stayed on hold for forty-five minutes while the KaibaCorp secretary tried to unsuccessfully locate her employer. Then he had seen the news broadcast.

Now he was crazed. Yes, absolutely bonkers. Because anyone who snuck into Kaiba Manor had to be completely whacked or suicidal. And seeing as he was creeping around the high-tech security cameras, he had to assume there was some sense of self-preservation there.

"_Security right around the left bend,"_ his accomplice whispered in his mind.

The boy ducked under one of the few blind spots, behind a slick metal crate filled with god-knows-what. The suited, impressive man stalked by the area, looking around before speaking into his ear-piece.

"No sign of either Mr.Kaibas here, continuing sweep;" He strode by, a stubborn frown on his expressionless face.

Yugi breathed a long sigh of relief. There were some perks to being built short.

_"It's all clear."_ He heard Yami's voice once again.

For anyone else, intrusion would be impossible. However, the spiky-haired rival had an edge in the form of a phantom that could sneak around the grounds and inform him of everything afore. That, and Kaiba had once showed him a secret entrance when Pegasus took over the young CEO's company.

_"And counting on Kaiba's natural paranoia;"_ Yami added slyly, _"he didn't tell anyone else about it except his brother."_

"Stop that Pharaoh," The boy mentally replied; "both of them are missing. I'm worried. Who knows what could have happened!"

_"Something did happen, Yugi."_ Yami reminded him carefully. _"He's being accused of murdering a girl."_

Yugi mentally furrowed his brow. "You don't really believe Kaiba did that though, do you?"

The spirit was silent for a stretch. "_I think Kaiba has a dangerous temper and an occasionally unreasonable determination… But no, I don't think he would kill anyone out of cold blood."_

Yugi took in the words. "There has to be an explanation to all this—both brothers disappear and now one is charged with murder. We have to get into his house and try to find out what's going on!"

The spirit digressed, sending himself ahead again. "_All clear to make a left."_

Violet eyes peered over the side of a building, sweeping around before sprinting towards a small, very misplaced grove of trees in this structure of steel and modernization. His spiky hair vanished behind one of the taller poplars as he dived out of the vision of the camera.

His knee scraped against the hardened bark and Yugi winced. "Sure you can't go and disable the security cameras?"

The Egyptian chuckled. "_With what substantive body_?"

The teen picked himself into a crouch, already peering toward the spot he remembered as his rival's secret base. "Point taken."

_"You should have brought Joey for that._" Yami made a swift aside to their previous argument before he sent his spirit self to check around the lone trees.

"You know I can't do that Yami," The dueling prodigy protested. "I don't like putting you in danger, and I won't involve anyone else if I can help it. Besides, Joey and Kaiba never exactly got along."

_"Neither have you and Kaiba,"_ The older man reminded him gently as he returned to his host. _"There's a pair doing a sweep just left of here. Stay still and they shouldn't spot you."_

The small frame stiffened up. "I don't mind Kaiba. He can be selfish and stubborn sometimes; but he really does care about his brother and he's helped us out quite a few times."

The parasite made a faint sound of disagreement. "_Be that as it may, I doubt he feels the same way. Though Mokuba is quite fond of you._"

"He's a good kid," Yugi responded with a fair level of worry; "all clear?"

He felt the Pharaoh depart again for a moment, and then return. _"Yes, you're good now. Just be quick because there is a camera pointed straight at the doorway and you'll be in plain sight for a moment."_

Standing up, the Mouto grandson darted through three trees to the stretch of unremarkable grass. It was so well-disguised that unless you knew it was there, the door would be nearly impossible to find. His heart pounding, Yugi threw himself at the ground; feeling for the near invisible cord that would spring the opening. He scrambled for a few moments, panicking while Yami whispered words of calming in his head. Finally finding the rope, the intruder gave a sharp pull.

_"Good job,"_ The spirit murmured in his ear as Yugi dove into the hole; sliding the trap-door shut behind him.

"We're in."

§

"Are you sure we can trust this guy?" Kaiba asked for the second time, a wary scowl on his face as he stepped out of the car.

Kestrel shot him a half-exasperated, half-amused sort of look. "I assure you Mr.Kaiba. Too much is at stake for me to put this search in the hands of a possible enemy. He will help."

Still restless, the CEO followed her quick, determined step into a shady-looking pub_. If the press ever saw me here…_

_…It wouldn't matter. If the press does catch me, I have bigger things to worry about then falling stocks_. Seto gritted his teeth; recalling his stock chart. _It's already got to be falling from this criminal bullshit._

Snapping out of his thoughts, the brunette found himself quite out-of-place in the dingy pub. The lighting was poor, and the dirty state of the few windows didn't improve that state. The small bar was occupied by three fat, balding old men with flannel; hole-checked clothes and equally stupid and bitter looks. The patchy-looking tables were empty except for rather cheep arrangements of plastic flowers and cracked chairs. A frightened looking family was eating at a washed-out red booth.

Disdain crept into Kaiba. This was a place for bums to come and drink away their worthless lives. He turned around to lecture Amun for bringing him into such a dump; and saw her confidently stride over to one of the empty barstools.

The barkeeper, a skinny, sickly looking man, blinked twice at the young woman and man who had just entered. They were the brightest and cleanest things in the pub.

"I-Is there anything I can get you?" He finally asked to the patiently waiting woman.

Smiling gently, Kestrel nodded. "A shot of vodka if you would. Oh, and can you get Hajime out here? He's a good friend of mine and I'd love to see him since I'm passing through town."

The barkeeper blinked again; processing the apparently astonishing revelation that this person knew Hajime. "R-right away," He cast her a confused glance before passing the shot glass over to her and walking out of vision.

Seto, still dressed in his white business suit, stood imperiously against a pole and watched the medic calmly pour herself another shot. The three men she was sitting besides were casting rather lecherous looks at her slender body; and the brunette felt his blood rise when one of them smiled broadly and punched his buddy; nodding towards the woman.

Kestrel ignored their antics, instead twirling the amber liquid around in her slightly dusty glass with a vaguely interested look.

_Stupid girl, doesn't realize what those animals could do to— _Seto stepped forward when the man closest to her turned around in his chair and blatantly stared.

Golden eyes turned sharply in a small motion, catching his own blue ones.

"No," they said silently. "Just stay there for a moment."

Smoldering silently, the man returned to his rigid post on the pole; glaring at the other three. He watched the family hurry out of the pub from the corner of his eye.

"So babe," The man started, his cheeks flushed slightly. "You got a friend here?"

Looking disinterested, the businesswoman responded politely; twirling the glass in her hand. "Ah, we haven't been in touch recently, but I am hoping to catch up today."

A different man guffawed as if this was the funniest thing he had ever heard while the one talking smiled malevolently. "Well you know, I could take you home and we could get 'in-touch'."

Seto restrained a snort from his watch. _If that's not one of the worst pick-up lines._

"Thank you for the offer," Kestrel downed the glass; "but I have made plans already to meet with someone else."

A baffled look stopped the laughing from the drunk; and suddenly his girth scooted closer, looking imposing. "Who said that was a suggestion, sweetheart?"

Sensing that the conversation had turned violent, Seto moved sharply between the two barstools; glaring at the man from his height advantage. "I did. A poor one too."

The drunk and his two buddies stood up, menacing. "And who the hell are you, pretty boy?"

"HEY!" A booming voice responded instead, followed by a fit, grizzled man with a rugged, casual sort of beauty about him. His toned chest was exposed from the partially-opened t-shirt he was wearing over a loose pair of slacks. Floppy black hair fell across his forehead and into one dark eye. "There's no fighting in my bar. Get the hell out of here—you three!" The stranger pointed to the fat trio. "If I ever see you in 'ere again I'll take care o' you myself! Now! MOVE YOUR FAT ASSES!"

Looking mutinous; the men complied; slamming the door of the pub as they left.

Turning back to Kaiba and Amun the man swept over the brunette and smiled at the blond. "You know, you really should phone ahead so I can get those dirtbags out o' my bar before you come. And," He glanced back over at the taller man; "teach your friend some control."

Before Seto could retort, Kestrel had stood and pressed her hand against his forearm.

_If you want to help Mokuba, shut up for a moment._ It said. He snapped his mouth shut.

"Sorry about that Hajime," The medic winced; "He's a bit out-of-place. This really isn't a pleasure visit."

Something passed between the two and Hajime nodded; winking. "Well come into the back. Anytime I get to see my favorite gal is a pleasure." He loped a lazy arm around her shoulders and Seto followed; feeling his stomach burning unpleasantly with some resentment he couldn't identify.

§

_"Stop!"_ Yami hissed mentally none-too-soon. A frantic-looking maid rushed past the hallway, just missing the hidden youth.

Yugi released a breath, waiting for his partner's conformation signal.

_"Alright, go ahead. His room is directly left of here."_

Stealthily, the boy crept toward the large steel door around the bend and to his left shoulder. He came face-to-face with an unmarked wall of metal.

"How do we open it?" The host asked with growing anxiety_. This building was his house and the security is tight. Breaking into his company would be nearly impossible…_

_"Hold on,"_ Yami replied; wavering away once again. _"Go out of sight for a moment."_

Complying, Yugi stuffed himself in the nearest cupboard, thanking the gods that even Kaiba's maids needed something as low-tech as a broom room. After moments of heavy breathing in the dark, dank place smelling of bleach and scented powders, he felt the spirit's conscious return.

_"Okay," _The Pharaoh relayed_; "I turned visible enough to whisper into the guard's ear something about leaving his coat in Kaiba's bedroom. He'll return to the room. Sneak in when he slips in with his key-card and knock him out."_

Footsteps reached from the outside and the dueling prodigy cracked the door to poke an eye out. The guard was close now… Yugi started to sweat.

"Yami… you know I'm not the best fighter."

He felt the spirit smile at him. _"Don't worry Yugi. Let's switch. Your size has been useful up until now; but I think I should handle this."_

"'Kay," The wide-eyed teen switched into the older, darker features of his counterpart.

"Alright," Yami stepped out of the cupboard when he spotted the security guard enter the room with his key-card. "Let's go."

The man seemed nervous enough, and as intent as possible to enter and leave the room. He never spotted the light-footed figure enter the room behind him. A swift punch in the nape of his neck and he went down; still worrying about leaving his jacket in his unconscious.

"Now," The spiky-haired phantom stepped over the body. His violet-red eyes swept over the modern, soulless bedroom. "let's go find some clue of where Kaiba went and why he left."

_"We have to hurry_," Yugi's voice echoed softly in his mind.

"I know." Yami replied quietly, digging through the metallic drawers against the wall. "So let's go."

§

The back room was cleaner and a bit newer then the rest of the pub. It had a decent sofa with only a red wine stain on its green suede; though the lighting was still dull and the air was filled with smoke. Hajime lay across a futon, lighting a cigar and taking a few whiffs before looking up at his two guests.

"Cigar?" He offered them.

Seto glared and Kestrel shook her head. "Sorry Hajime, but it's hardly fitting for a physician to smoke."

"Oi, is that wha' you're into now, gal?" The owner ruffled his black hair, the one visible eye widening slightly in surprise. "Well you were always a gifted one I 'pose."

Blue eyes searched her face. _This guy doesn't even know her career? It takes years to become a doctor…. What exactly is their relationship?_

"It's an enjoyable job." The tawny-haired medic replied softly.

"Ah," Hajime sighed and sat up, "now why are you 'ere again gal, except o' course to be in my magnificent company?"

"We don't have time to waste on this bullshit." Kaiba snapped before she could reply. The black-haired man looked at him as though he had completely forgotten about his other guest.

"Mr. Kaiba, I assure you that this is necessary." Amun replied with certain firmness in her voice that stopped his argument.

"Hm," The brunette settled back with his arms folded and an impatient stare.

"She's right you know," Hajime rubbed his grizzled chin in slight thought; "there 's no way you're going t' avoid the police for long the way you are now."

The duelist's eyes flashed and the doctor frowned. "You know?"

"His mug is all o'vr the news, Kess." Hajime answered with an apologetic tone.

"I can explain," Kestrel admitted after a moment, looking like she would rather not explain.

Seto opened his mouth to protest but Hajime beat him to it; waving his hands in the air in dismissal.

"I don't need t' know. 'f you trust this man, that's good enough for me gal. You know I'd help you."

Weary relief slid across her face. "Thank you, Hajime."

A look passed between the two and then the man stood up; rubbing his hands together excitedly. "Now then, where t' start with you two? Hm… I think the clothes should be first…"

_Clothes? _Kaiba wondered.

"…and he'll need some face-work; far too easy t' recognize. You should be 'kay there…"

_Face work?_

"…After that I can take both o' your pictures and have fake ids ready in a' hour. You'll want to use yours primarily Kess; you're easier t' fudge then pretty boy over there…"

_Fake identifications?_

"…Anything else? Hm.. AH! I'll pick up some new cell phones fo' you both. You can keep your old ones but don't use them. Too easy to detect. Same goes with credit cards and computers. 'kay, let's get started!"

"Wait!" Seto hissed a little-too-late as he was ushered off by a scantily-clad assistant to the dressing room.

_Damn that Amun._

§

"Nothing," Yami hissed as he roughly shut the desk drawer.

_"Careful,"_ His host reminded him with a soothing voice. _"Nothing good will come of being caught."_

"We've been searching for over fifteen minutes and there seems to be no trace of Kaiba—even signs that he ever lived here!"

_"I know,"_ Yugi gently replied. _"Maybe he doesn't spend a lot of time here."_

The Pharaoh stopped rummaging through the bed sheets and stood with a start. "That's it..."

_"Yami?"_

"His office! Kaiba would spend most of his time in his office! We have to get there!" The spirit sprinted off down the hall.

"_Wait! Yami! Security!"_ Yugi cried out mentally without response_. "Guess we'll have to rely on luck this one."_

Running quietly through the corridors of steel and silver; Yami recalled the house structure from his out-of-body excursions. "Left… two hallways down right…. Another right at the third floor."

The house was huge, unlived in, and modern. He might as well have been in a city for all the direction he got from surroundings. Trusting his memory, the intruder darted around dark bends and through less-inhabited corridors. There were several close-calls with more perceptive security sweepers and one moment when he clipped the sight of a camera; and had to wait in anxious silence for the watcher to pass again, writing the flash of movement off as boredom and weariness. After nearly five minutes of careful navigation, the duo reached the doorway to Seto Kaiba's office. It was, luckily, open.

The phantom spotted the pair of goons sweeping the office, and waited with baited breath for an opening to enter the room before they left and locked it behind them. They looked big enough to be able to take him out.

Finally, however, one of them turned to talk to the other and Yami managed to dive under his rival's desk, where the men had already checked. They departed, shutting the spiky-haired young man in the sterile, crisp room.

_"There's got to be something in here that gives us a clue about where Kaiba's run off to."_ Yugi whispered urgently.

Nodding absently, Yami carefully disengaged the bugs around the office before he trusted his hands to dig through the numerous files and technological pieces in the room.

A quick rifling of the end-desk came up with nothing more than empty bills and other business documents. In the shelves, there were usb ports with more business tracking, a few prototype designs of nanochips, and a vanilla envelope of schedules and such.

It was in the main desk, that he found it.

Yami had located a strange box which would not open in the desk drawer; and intrigued, attempted to open it. This led him to find a tight wad of maps and red-marked credit bills. There was a half-written missings person paper for one Mokuba Kaiba as well as one for Talla Amun; a scattering of photos.

"Yugi," The Pharaoh poured over the papers. "I think we found something."

§

"How's it going?" Seto heard the long drawl of Hajime through the changing curtain as he changed his pristine white suit for a pair of well-fitting jeans and a t-shirt with some obscure brand logo pasted across its front.

"He's just picked out an outfit from the racks. I've fitted his contacts and gotten a hair dye while I was waiting;" Came the muttered voice of the female assistant.

"Thanks Madoko. I'll take it from here. Go strip Kestrel's hair fo' me; won't you?"

"Ah, sir;" She chirped, her steps fading away.

Kaiba threw on a black jacket to complete the outfit and stepped out of the changing room. Hajime turned his visible eye toward him with a smile.

"Well then, Kaiba, I 'ave colored contacts and hair coloring t' do next."

Scowling, the brunette sat down on the stool the bar-owner pointed to.

"Sos, Kaiba," Hajime spoke lightly as he propped one blue eye open and held a circular film beside it; "what is your relationship with that gal?"

Expertly, Hajime placed the contact on the blue eye with his finger. A cool, wet feeling passed through his face and the CEO blinked. His vision cleared to see the black-haired man poising to put the next one in.

"We're business partners. That's all." The elder brother stated curtly as the other contact was stuck in.

The man's fingernail grazed his eye and Seto gritted his teeth. "Watch it."

"Oops, sorry!" Hajime exclaimed without looking a bit apologetic. He began to mix a bowel of chemical-smelling substance with a golden-red color. "However, I can't help but think you're not being honest wit' me Kaiba. Kess is, at times, stupidly kind, but I do not think even she would break the law fo' a business partner."

Seto frowned. What was his relationship with the Amun woman? It was just business right? A mutual alignment to save two kids; both sides benefited. That was business.

"It benefits her as well as me." The businessman spoke coldly as Hajime brushed the dye through his straight locks of coffee-colored hair.

"Ah, I see;" Hajime replied without sounding convinced. He finished brushing the hair, leaving the other man's neck feeling saturated and heavy. "Well I 'ave a request o' you then, Kaiba. Just take it as payment fo' all this illegal help I'm giving you." He winked a dark eye.

The owner of KaibaCorp narrowed his eyes. "I don't do favors."

"Well this isn't the favor you're thinking of; I'm sure." Hajime replied lightly with a firm look. "I want you to watch ov'r Kess."

Seto didn't make a sign of his surprise as Hajime turned away from his, cleaning up the eye and hair coloring.

"I could tell that gal t' be careful a million a' one times and she'd still come back bleedin'. She's brilliant, mind you. Beautiful and clever and resourceful… but she cares t' damn much. Even when she knows something will hurt her, that gal would still do anything t' help someone else. That's just the way she is; and no one can change that. Sos…" He turned to Kaiba, winking. "…it's our job t' watch out for her since she won't watch ov'r herself; got it?"

For a moment; the businessman didn't reply. Despite his casual pose, Seto realized that Hajime was deadly serious.

"Hm."

"Good," The pub owner took this noise as an agreement and smiled once again. "Now, let's go get your new identifications an' credit cards, shall we?"

Silently, the elder brother followed the taller man out as he talked.

"We'll take a transfer of money from both o' your bank accounts into a safe account as a bill. Then we'll attach the credit cards an identif'cation names to the account so it'll essentially be your money; just impossible to track…."

They passed a mirror and Kaiba caught a glance of himself. Grudgingly, he admitted that Hajime had done well. He no longer looked like Seto Kaiba, technological genius. Instead he was a handsome young man in his twenties with crimson, dark red hair and piercing olive eyes dressed in street clothes. He was attractive, but less remarkably as the color palled out his skin and a bit of dark powder amplified the paleness.

"Mr.Kaiba," Amun walked toward them, following the female assistant. Her tawny hair was a fair, beach-colored blond and wearing a pair of jeans and a simple button-up top. Make-up had been applied to highlight her cheekbones and made her smooth face seem more rigid then it was. Again, pretty but not commemorative.

"Tch, no, no, no," Hajime waved his finger at her. "Not any more. He is now Mr. Akio Shinobu; and you are Mrs. Rina Shinobu."

§

A crack of dusty light wavered through the bars of the foot-wide window. It fell across the dirtied face of a young boy. He flinched, as if it hurt him, and then slowly opened his cerulean eyes.

"Seto…" He murmured, his voice parched.

Suddenly, the boy sat up and blinked away the sleep. His dark hair was lank and his lips were chapped; but he was alive and whole.

"I must have been dreaming again…" He spoke louder this time, gazing out toward the barred window and the cement walls surrounding him. The gray walls were cracked and a dying vine grew in the corner. It was completely devoid of any furniture and the stone warmed in the day and froze at night. Metal bars kept him in.

"Big brother…" He whispered into the chilly morning air, hugging his knees to himself. "Come get me soon."

Footsteps sounding on the stone made him look up, blue eyes taking in a strange; crazed-looking man with silvery eyes and a twisted smile.

"Hello Mokuba," He spoke with a velvety accent. "My name is Leon Tabar."

§

A/N: Whew, sorry for the long wait. Summer's been crazy. Fun, but busy. Anyways, I'm leaving (again) tonight so I'll try to update before the end of this month. Luv ya all and please review.


	22. French Hospitality

_Was I just your surrogate?_

_Was I your revenge?_

_I have no regrets...yet_

_I have no regrets..._

_You'll wish we never took this ride_

_You made me do this, you made me do this, you made me_

_I wish I was afraid of suicide_

_Long ago before I died_

_We should never be this high..._

_I wish I was afraid of suicide_

_Once ago was I made of glass,_

_Long ago before I cracked..._

_Once ago was I made of glass_

_Long ago before I cracked_

_You made me do this_

_I just can't forget_

_The blood,_

_The stitches,_

_The bite marks_

_The glass memories reflecting back_

_The suffocating block,_

_Ill milk of regret_

_Just smile and breath._

-From 'Milk of Regret' Performed by Otep

§

Leon Tabar, Mokuba decided, was a strange man. No, he was beyond strange. He came from Pluto or something...

"Would you like a _Chocolate Savoyard_?" His voice was infuriatingly polite and brushed with hints of some unidentifiable accent as he offered the pastry to his captive.

The younger Kaiba chose to glare in silence. He was confused. This... Leon, had everything wrong. When you kidnapped someone; you locked them up somewhere dark and scared the shit out of them with vague threats and lack of food. You didn't...

"Or perhaps a cup of coffee is more to your liking?"

...Offer delectable items while having them in your sitting room.

The child's blue eyes scrutinized him.

Tabar wasn't old, per se. Older then his brother; but not in his forties yet. He had a lean, pale face with prominent cheekbones and an thin, underfed build. He wasn't ugly; and in fact, with a few pounds and some sunlight, Leon would probably have become quite attractive. However, a certain ill look hung on the dark circles on his face and the listless quality of his well-groomed dark hair. And the gray eyes were all-too bright and large; crazed. Dressed in a pristine suit; he seemed every bit an effaceable businessman.

A white, bony hand placed the cup of coffee back down and intense silver eyes bore into his; waking the boy's thoughts.

"Do you have no appetite; or do you find this food unappealing? I can send for something more..." The kidnapped seemed to consider his phrasing; "...Japanese if need be."

Mokuba began to regain his footing; scowling in response to the hospitality. "No, I don't want food. Why am I here? What have you done with Talla? What do you plan to—" Leon held up a hand and Mokuba halted instinctively.

"So many questions," He sighed. "but such is the curiosity of the child. And it must be sated lest it fester." Leon smirked; leaning back on his arm-chair and pulling out a cigar. Casually, he lit the end and blew out the haze a few times before talking; staring at his captive all the while. The room was silent in a freakish; before-the-storm way.

"You are Mokuba Kouki1 Kaiba; correct?" His voice gained a certain pointed edge to it with the interrogation.

He blinked; shaking his black mane. "Yeah..."

"Good." Tabar had relaxed back again. "Well, Mokuba, you are here because both you and your brother are closely affiliated with... what is she calling herself nowadays—Kestrel Amun; I believe. Is that name familiar to you?"

Azure eyes widened. "Talla's adoptive mother. What do you want with her?"

The idea of Kestrel instigating a real; physical fight seemed impossible. Her impeccable mannerism and undeniable charm seemed to persevere with even the most obtuse person. In fact, the only person the woman had ever seemed to get angry with was...

_Seto._

"I am afraid," Leon was taking time in selecting his words; frightening gaze never dropping from the boy's face; "that she has stolen something very precious to me."

For a moment, kidnapped and captor sat in silence after the statement. And then, Mokuba grinned; staring defiantly like the teenager he was. Something of Talla seemed to shine through him.

"Yeah right; like I'd believe you. I've been around Kestrel enough to know that she would never do anything like that." His confidence in the medic gave Kaiba a security in himself. He was sure, now, that this man was either completely quacked or telling a lie.

The silver-eyed man leaned back. "Is that so?" His voice was still, quiet.

"Yeah, and you know what else;" The fear slid away and left him in complete control as he stared confidently back into the man's tight face. "My big brother is going to come for me and then you'll be sorry."

Mokuba leaned back in his chair; and there was a pause before the mousy-haired man spoke again.

"Mokuba," His face slackened, and tilted in almost pity; but the eyes stayed in their lucid brightness. "I was afraid of this. That was why I took you away from her influence.. but it appeared that I was too late. She has already convinced you of her goodness; when in fact, she is anything but."

The young co-owner of Kaiba Corp frowned, bordering on pouting. "I already told you I wasn't going to believe you."

"She had Seto Kaito2 Kaiba, your brother I presume, kill an innocent woman who had come to visit his company." He responded with a detached composure.

The black-haired boy leaped from his chair. "Don't you dare say that about Seto! He would never do something like th—"

Tabar cut him off by placing a palm-sized radio on the large desk between them. It had been set to one of Domino's local news broadcasts.

"The manhunt for CEO of Kaiba Corp, Seto Kaiba, has taken another twist. After stabbing a visitor to his company, he fled the scene. It has come to light that fellow businesswoman, Kestrel Amun, is on the run with him. IF you have any information on either of them please call the hot-line at..."

The speaker's voice droned pointlessly in his ear. His pupil was a seedy hole drowning in a sea of clouded blue.

_Seto... big brother wouldn't kill anyone..._

_But the news... its not like they would be lying too..._

_What's going on?!_

A sudden movement caught his attention and the youth realized his host was standing; extending a pale hand. "Come with me."

Too shocked to do anything else; Mokuba did.

§

If his rather aggressive driving was any clue; Kestrel was sure that her companion was fairly pissed at the moment. Then again, this was Seto Kaiba they were talking about... Not the most courteous person in the world.

"Seto," The medic treaded carefully, reading over his hostile body movements. "I understand you are upset...but it is for the sake of the children."

Without turning his bright eyes from the road, he humphed. "Like I give a damn what our ids say. I just want to be finished with this whole ordeal."

Sensing that Kaiba was not going to be reasonable; Amun backed down and mentally sighed. They had hours of road ahead of them, and one cranky driver. This was not going to be enjoyable.

"Well hopefully visiting your stepfather's old summer home will give us a lead on Talla and Mokuba." After much scheming and debates; it was decided that they would indeed investigate into the girl's disappearance first. After some assessments and hours pouring over documents at the bar; Seto had concluded that the first place to check would be the large manor he had spent summer time in during his stay with Gozobora. It had been spacious with sprawling acres of farm and wood, self-sufficient with enough stock to feed a small army; much less an old man and a fugitive. And it was out-of-the way and nearly impossible to find unless you knew where you were going. Simply put, the summer house would allow the former CEO the lifestyle he craved and the privacy he needed. It was on the outskirts of Japan, a mountainous region seven and a half hours away.

After reluctantly accepting his status as a 'newlywed' ex-hippie musician married to the young free-spirited artists Amun; he had all but demanded to drive.

She let him without a fuss. The woman sensed that she had taken the reigns from a man with perfect control; and happily handed them back with a silent apology.

He was still going to be grumpy though.

_I swear, _Kestrel began tracing their various plans on the road maps with red pen. _He's like a teenager with all his brooding. Next thing you know he'll start popping zits._

The idea of an acne-ridden; stoic boy entertained her considerably before her thoughts slipped darker along with her smile.

_Talla... Mokuba..._

_Wait for us._

_§_

Kaiba glanced discreetly over at his passenger after three hours of what could be called companionable silence. She was surprisingly interesting to watch. Unaware of his gaze; she left her composure drop. A foolish move he was benefiting from immensely. Thoughts seemed to swirl in the fog of her honey-colored eyes; coloring her features. A tiny, nostalgic smile would appear occasionally and Seto was more than sure that she was thinking of her adoptive daughter. Within a few moments, though, the slight tilt of her full lips would fall again; and a shadow crept in the hollow of her eye bone; accenting her smooth cheeks while her soft eyes narrowed. Anger, fear, sorrow—emotions he kept too hidden from even himself to read well on her expressive, foreign features. And then a bittersweet kind of smirk, like admitting something ironic in a book or seeing a stupid mistake. The phases passed and repeated and it took him the full three hours to begin to fully understand what each look meant, how each line of her face drew a full picture. The one thing he really didn't know, however...

Is why he had even bothered to look in the first place. And even more troubling, why he glanced back whenever he could—took the time to sit and stare and learn the curves of her face.

_Why the hell do I care ? _The cynical, businessman demanded of him. _She's simply an asset, a partner at best. Tolerable. _

_Only because she left. _A sly, boyish inner voice that was suppressed 99 of the time answered back with its few seconds of acknowledgment. _It hurt when she left; when she called you Kaiba. Don't you remember? You were hurt._

_My priority is saving my brother. _A third, harsh voice of a child ended the mental argument quickly._ I don't give a damn about anything else._

It was true. At least mostly.

It allowed him to focus on the road for a few more minutes anyways.

In a strange way; the duelist was glad for the distraction. He didn't want to dwell on where they were actually going—to think about what had happened out that house with that pompous bastard who called himself a **father**. The memories still cut deep, twinging down his spinal cord and trying to reach the stifled twelve-year old in him. They were a weakness, and he could not afford such a thing. Especially in front of **her**.

Kaiba scowled again, forehead lining.

_Why Talla too? Who is Tabar and how does he know about Gozabora? _

_Why was she dragged into all of this?_

However neither the rapidly burning sun nor the rather irate drivings around him offered any answers. However, one particularly slow jack ass told him exactly _what _was shoved up his ass when the fugitive swiveled around him.

"Seto," A soft, entreating voice broke his thoughts. "You may want to be a little more cautious. While I have faith in our disguises; I'd rather avoid being pulled over by the police."

Mentally cursing; the young CEO stopped himself from passing another driver. She did have a point, after all.

"Seto;" She called again. Damn he had to spend almost four more hours in a confined space with this woman?!

"What?" He finally snapped, giving her a withering stare. Which of course, she promptly ignored; instead replying with a not-so-happy-as-warming smile.

"We'll find them in time." Confidence. "I know we will." Security.

It was a good thing she had them both.

Because Seto Kaiba was running a little low on both.

§

It was Atem that safely guided them through the security-decked halls and rooms of Kaiba Corp. From their, the spirit-bound pair made their way back into Kaiba's secret door, into the underground laboratory; and hightailed it across the fence and off of corporation property. Even as the large gateway loomed behind them; adrenaline rushed Yami all the way down the paved sidewalk and into the shelter of a public park. Panting, the Pharaoh sat down on the concrete surrounding the fountain; is shoulder leaning against the large marble shoulder of a tiger. For now, they were alone—a teenage boy with strange hair, clutching a vanilla folder for dear life and breathing heavily. The smallest flash; and suddenly he was a foot shorter and a few years younger.

_We did it._

Yugi regained his breath and and waited a moment for the cool stone to arrange his thoughts. After a moment or two; he pulled himself into a sitting position and sat the envelope on is lap; opening its broken seal reverently.

Papers spilled out between his crossed legs. A map of Japan; marked with tiny colored strips on certain points, a boldly red line connecting them from start to end in a kind of awkward circle. A familiar scrawl—neat and almost technical, labeled the points.

_Kaiba's handwriting._

There was a time line, colored and all within a few days of the present. It had a slight, unidentifiable flair to the footnotes and citations. A number of probability charts, scratched out in places; hid amongst the other valuable information. It were the photographs, however, that he investigated thoroughly first.

The first was a relatively new shot of Mokuba Kaiba; his long black mane loose and easy smile reflecting in innocent eyes. The second was a very similar pose from Talla Amun; sporting a pair of jeans and a rock-on hand sign. Below that was one of a young woman with auburn hair.

_The girl from the news—the one Kaiba killed. _The spirit answered his silent confusion.

_Supposedly killed. _Muto replied with a mental frown.

Atem stayed quiet as the boy fingered through the final pictures.

A man, older and with a strong chin and cold eyes.

_Know him? _The host queered unnecessarily.

_No. _

Brown lining in concentration, he reached the final picture and smiled in spite of himself. It was the pair of friends, grinning madly into the camera. The girl was blowing a kiss, a casual arm draped across his shoulders. He was blushing slightly, hands in pockets.

A quick breeze rose up and snatched the photograph from his hands, floating it a ways toward the ground.

"Oh No!" The number one duelist scrambled up, catching the picture by its edge and sighing in relief. "Whew, that was close.

_Yugi,_Yami reached out with a curious thought. _Flip it around, I thought I saw something,_

"Huh?" He did as his other instructed; and true enough there was that artsy, loopy writing that matched the time line.

**Mokuba and Talla—September 1, 2010**

_Check the other ones. _The Millennium Spirit urged.

Excitement growing, he quickly flipped through the other photographs, finding the prediction true.

**Mokuba—August, 2009**

**Talla—February 2010**

**Annabella Hibiki—this year, a**nd added to the usual date and name was:

**Leon's tueur?**

_What's a tueur?_

_I have no idea. _

_Perhaps it's in another language. _Yugi suggested, mentally noting to look it up in a dictionary as soon as possible.

Putting it aside, he picked up the unknown man again. Scanning the back, he found the writing they had hoped for.

Violet eyes widened, black shrinking in the depths of shock.

_It can't be!_

**Gozobora Kaiba—one month before death...**

And in Seto's script:

**Looks the same now.**

§

Her skin had a gray pallor that associated coldness before he even touched it. Her auburn locks were dull and peeled away from the ethereal, colorless. Someone had pressed her eyes closed, letting the dark lashes strike against the bloodless cheek. A tiny, knowing smile rested on the navy lips—as if carrying a secret happily to her grave. Her body was perfect; so commanding was her beauty that the paint-ball sized hole gaping in her chest seemed a comically out-of-place flaw. It had been cleaned out; and know stood—a dark, blackish red insert into the chilled breast.

Mokuba felt a combination of revulsion and curiosity as his warm, tan hands glided over a smooth, icy arm. He had never seen a woman naked before; and even in death the girl possessed a Gothic charm. Yet the way she was drained, it seemed; and the slight grin on her unseeing face forced a shudder down his back. He took a step back from the examination table; feeling stifled and frigid. He took another step back, ramming into something solid.

The younger Kaiba brother wheeled around; eyes wide with fright. The twin orbs met sinister gray ones.

Neither Mokuba nor Leon moved for a breath; as the man bore his unfathomable gaze into his captive; knocking the breath from him. Finally, the intensity of his slated irises moved away, toward the corpse a few feet away.

"Her name is Hibiki Annabella; or Anna, as I called her." There was no anomaly in his voice as he monotonously identified the dead girl. "She was very dear to me."

The black-haired youth searched his face for either sorrow or humor; but found neither. Only that strange, unidentifiable intensity filtered through the man's fierce composure.

"What happened to her?" Mokuba asked; unable to remove his gaze from her still corpse. He felt a little nauseated.

His captor turned back to him and the youngest Kaiba wished he hadn't. The maniacal brightness in those gray eyes was almost unbearable.

"She went to Kaiba Corp on a visit; and was shot by Seto Kaiba."

"Lier!" The words were instantaneous, involuntarily spat out of his mouth. "Seto wouldn't..." He fixated on the cold, dead body. "My brother, he..." She had been alive only a few days ago. "He wouldn't do this." What began in a yell ended in a murmur.

"Hm," Leon stared down at the child with contempt. "Search your memories. Are you sure that Seto Kaiba never did anything to you? To hurt you?"

"My brother protected me!" A little spark had crackled once more in the boy; shining in his face. "After our parents died, the orphanage... was a terrible place to live... But Seto made it bearable, made it fun!" He was beginning to feel blood circulating once again through his numb limbs. "We used to sneak out at night when all the big kids were asleep and play on the swings! And during the day we would play chess—he always won, of course." It was as though the nostalgia shook of some oppressive dreariness he hadn't been aware of carrying. "And whenever the bullies would steal something from me; my big brother would always get it back. He was always there—That was our promise..." He fingered the locket under his clothes, clutching it tightly before glaring back at the imposing figure.

"That we would stick together; no matter what! And I don't care what you or anyone else says!" He was shouting again, from the top of his lungs and it felt wonderfully free. "I won't loose hope in my brother! Seto will come for me! He'll rescue me and all of this will just be a memory! You'll be _nothing_!"

Tabar didn't reply immediately, allowing a lapse of silence. When he did speak again it was merely... "So be it... Kikyo!"

A tall, slender blond appeared in a matter of seconds, her mud-colored eyes shining with admiration at the sickly man. "Yes, Master Tabar?"

He didn't remove is eyes from their battle with clear blue ones as he gave instructions. "Mr. Kaiba is to be put into the spare room and given no _nourriture_. I want perfect _isolement_."

The young woman nodded with a ridiculously low bow. "Yes, Master Tabar."

With a loving stroke of his shoulder she grabbed the captive boy by the forearm and half-dragged him away; while he made noises of protest."

Leon smiled wildly.

"It's been a while since I met a mind so resistant, my little bird." He cooed to the empty room. "But don't worry; it'll end the same. I'll just have to ask Gozobora about the subject of his resilience..."

"Seto Kaiba."

§

When Yugi Muto showed up at his door—two in the morning, soaking wet, and carrying a large briefcase—Joey Wheeler did something only true friends do. He opened his door, found smaller clothes for the boy to wear; and made two cups of cocoa while chattering mindlessly. He didn't expect a reply and only when they were both seated; Yugi on his second mug of cocoa; did his friendly brown eyes become serious.

"Yugi?"

Understanding the tone, the guest put down his mug softly, running his fingers across it listlessly. "Have you ever heard of someone called Gozobora Kaiba?"

The taller boy blinked. "Kaiba? Like our snot-nosed brat? Why, has Kaiba done anything to you?" He jumped up, flames metaphorically shooting up. "What's that bastard done now? I'll beat that smirk off his pretty rich boy fac—!"

"No, no, Joey!" Muto waved his hands quickly, sighing when his best friend sat back down.

_This was a bad idea._

"Om... Joey... did you happen to listen to the news these past two days?"

The blond wiped his upper lip. "No, I've had a little cold and Mai—" He consecutively flushed and shook his head with a cheep smile. "—Er, anyways I haven't really been out lately. Why do you ask?"

Mentally, the spiky-haired teen smiled. _So Joey and Mai finally..._

_It's about time. _Yami smirked in his thoughts.

_Yeah... I feel bad about not knowing he was sick though... some friend I am._

_Yugi, we have a crisis right now. Joey's tough; he can get through one cold with only Mai._

He chuckled silently. _Yeah, guess you're right Yami._

"Yugi!" Joey stood up, almost touching noses and glaring scrutinizingly at the other teen. "Hello, Earth to Yugi! Anybody home?"

Snapping out of his mental conversation; he blinked at their proximity. "What? Oh, Sorry Joey. I was just thinking."

Just because Wheeler knew of Atem and still didn't reject him; did not make Yugi inclined to mention the spirit. He was all too aware of how... creepy it was to have voices in your head.

"Okay..." Joey drawled out, sitting down and still suspicious. "So what have I missed?"

This had not been a good idea.

"Their saying... om... that Kaiba killed a girl."

The hot drink blew out of Joey's mouth, spraying everything within a five foot radius as he gagged.

Really not a good idea.

"WHAT?!" Wide hazel eyes under untidy locks. "He—He—Kaiba did what?!"

"They're saying he killed a girl who came into his work yesterday." Yugi spilled out quickly. "But—"

"They're lying." Wheeler cut in, silencing his friend.

"You don't un—wait, what?" The spiky-haired boy watched his host, bright eyes hidden by the corn-colored hair as he stared at the table. His jaw was set, ticking a bit at the side and every inch of his aura was tense, serious.

"They're lying." His voice was low, hard. "The news people. Those scumbags are always digging at Kaiba just to sell a paper. I mean, the guy has a permanent stick up his ass." Joey looked into the space above the shorter boy's left shoulder. "But... murder? No way!"

Or maybe... I really great one.

Muto stayed silent, surprised at the defiant belief in the boy Kaiba had always treated like trash.

_Joey?_

"He's not a killer; I won't believe it." Slowly, the dark soberness left his features and he gave a bitter half-smile. "Besides, that would get his pretty little rich boy hands dirty, wouldn't it?"

"Yeah," Yugi gave a soft smile back. "I guess it would."

Defiantly a great one.

Silence lapsed over them for a moment and then Yami pried his host to snap out of it.

"So, about Gozobora Kaiba..." Yugi began again; taking out his backpack and all the files he had stored in it with the vanilla folder.

_This man..._

_The one you saw as dirt on your shoes; a piece of trash on the scenery..._

Joey nodded, picking up the photos and listening to his best friend explain what he had discovered.

_This stupid mutt..._

The two boys talked and Yami half-tuned them in, wondering at his friend.

b_elieves in __**you**__, Kaiba._

_§_

Kestrel looked up from her map as she felt the car turn in an unexpected direction.

"Seto," She queried. "Why are we turning off here?"

It was the first words the pair had spoken to each other in a few hours because Kestrel had spoken softly about meaningless things and Kaiba had simply listened to her voice rather than the small-talk. He knew she did it to relax the atmosphere and didn't actually expect a response of any sort.

"I don't know what security will be like if he is using the manor." He explained crisply, smoothly parking the car between two oaks. "So it will be less conspicuous to walk."

Amun folded up the map and stashed it into the dashboard before getting out of the car and shutting the door quietly behind her. The half-moon lit their stroll through the tall, browning trees. Careful footsteps crunched on the leaves and filled the silence as two pairs of alert eyes scanned for any threats.

"Even if we don't find Gozobora or Talla here," She broke the hush of the night. "We should still search for clues as to how he returned from his supposed death and where he might be."

"Ah," He made a noise of agreement and kept up his brisk pace.

The summer house came into view within five minutes of power-walking; the autumn trees falling back away from the overgrown grass of the estate.

Steeling himself, Seto strode boldly through the wild lawn and into the long paved path. Kestrel followed wordlessly, glancing around at the lack of life before looking up at the building itself. She studied it for a moment or two, contemplative behind him.

"You and Mokuba... you never come here?"

The stoic man glanced back, frowning. "It's late autumn. Why would we be at a vacation house in the woods?"

The medic shook her head; cocking it in contemplation. "No... you've never come here after...Gozobora died, have you?"

"What makes you say that?" He snapped, wishing for solitude and silence.

_This stupid woman won't shut up!_

"Because," Amber eyes shot him. "It's not your taste—grand as the city mansion perhaps; but far too luxurious and wooden for your style."

_My style? _His mouth made a slight 'o'; but they reached the large double-doors before he could reply.

Without knocking; the brunette pressed on the door. It was locked. He jingled the handle a little. Still no movement.

"He kept a spare key in the shed out back." Seto commented before taking off toward the side of the house.

The businesswoman watched his tall frame recede into the darkness; narrowing her eyes slightly.

"Seto," It was a whisper on the wind, one not intended to be heard.

_These memories of yours... of here with this man..._

Nothing had missed her attention—the rigidness of his back, the slightly elevated heat of his body, the overly controlled movements, the excessive defensiveness.

_Are they really so bad?_

"What did your stepfather do to you?" She murmured as his lithe body came back into view, placing a careful smile on her visage.

"Find it?"

He held the key-card up for answer and wordlessly slid it into the door; feeling her eyes on his back.

"Great," Amun slid through the half-opened door, winking at her male companion. "I'll take the lower floors, you take the upper. Just yell if you find anything!"

Kaiba opened his mouth; and met the end of her pants. She had already headed down the stairs. He closed his jaw, inhaling once and releasing it slowly.

_It'll be better if I search alone anyways._

And for the first time in ten years; he stepped into his stepfather's house.

§

A/N: Sorry about the delay, summer's are a bitch for me to find time to write and this chapter was really tying a lot in, so... Any predictions on what's going to happen. And how does everyone like our dear Leon and his woman?

1Shining, Bright Hope

2Ocean, Sea; or to Soar


	23. In Sickness and in Health

_What have I done?_

_Where have I come from?_

_When I burnt the backs with a sun through a glass did I seal the loss that's become me?_

_Feelings undone_

_What have I become?_

_When I turned my back on you I turned my back on myself and became this machine_

_Thoughtlessness_

_Selfishness_

_Hopelessness_

_Arrogance_

_I feel it on the inside_

_twisting and contorting_

_Memory has shaped me once again._

_I still feel you on the inside_

_Biting through and stinging_

_Will I ever forget to remember?_

_Shadows in the Sun_

_filter through us_

_Still wrestle the demons that arrested me as a child_

_Confessions rejected_

_We grow up_

_To give up_

_People step on the cracks for wounds owed paid back_

_Through the words of surrender_

_Emptiness_

_Loneliness_

_Listlessness_

_Worthlessness_

_I feel it on the inside_

_twisting and contorting_

_Memory has shaped me once again._

_I still feel you on the inside_

_Biting through and stinging_

_Will I ever forget to remember?_

_Can you save me?_

_From myself?_

_From these memories?_

_Can you save me?_

_From myself?_

_From these memories?_

_-_'Forget to Remember' Performed by Mudvayne

§

She sneezed again, wrinkling her nose at the dust on the musty old collection of war books and business pamphlets. The downstairs landing; Kestrel had assessed, must have been a kind of study/private office. It was unnecessarily large, and the cream-colored walls were lined with old oaken shelves bearing classical reads for show and technical books for use. She had seen it enough to recognize a classless businessman storing art and literature to appear cultural.

The royal blue carpeting must have, at one point, been incredibly majestic and groomed. Now, however, it had scrapped patches were rats had chewed on the fabric and dark blotches of age. Out of all the lights, only an oil lantern managed to work for her. It illuminated the thick layers of dust and algae in the dank space.

The businesswoman was currently in a sitting position on the floor; leafing through the lower-level books for any hint of...

_Talla_...Amber eyes narrowed, unfocused on the words before her. _Talla, please..._

_Large, green eyes looked up at her from behind her bangs; an incredibly blank, lost look emptying them._

_The young doctor paused in the rain, recognizing that look in the child's eyes. Giving a quick scan of the park for any parents and finding none; she approached the girl._

_Her sneakers sloshed in the puddle; startling the child into glancing up at the stranger._

_They stared at each other—green meeting gold—under the rain in near isolation. _

_And then, the woman smiled and bent down; holding the umbrella above the girl as well._

_"You'll catch a cold in the rain; you know." She lectured gently._

_The child blinked, as if surprised to be spoken to, and made no reply._

_"Do you have a name, little one?" The older girl asked, still smiling gently even as she noted a busted lip and developing black eye._

_She opened her mouth, moving it as if to reply, and no sound came out. She shut it again; but managed to murmur, "Tallake." _

_"Talla-key?" The stranger repeated with a difficult accent. She winked. "I'm not too good at saying that. Is Talla okay?"_

_Slowly, she nodded and then pointed, shaking her hand toward the woman in desperate communication._

_"Me?" The doctor read the hand-signs. "I'm Kestrel."_

_"K...K-Kess?" The girl stammered, getting frustrated at her own inability to say the name properly._

_A warm hand descended on her shoulder and Tallake looked up abruptly to see the strange, smiling woman. "It's okay. I really like Kess." _

_And after a moment to register the words, the girl broke out into a tiny giggle. _

_"Hm," Kess gave her a hand up. "How about I take you home to get bandaged up, huh?"_

_Giggling, Tallake followed the odd, pretty, older girl back_

Blinking from the memory; Amun shook her head with a whimsical little perk of her lips.

_You'd better be okay—little spitfire._

And once again she fell upon the books, stifling a little cough behind her fist.

After going through all the writing within easy reach; the medic stood up and moved to a different location. She stretched her arms as she walked to a bookshelf just left; and gave another little cough.

"Well, I doubt anyone's been here in quite a while." Amun noted to herself, ignoring the little shiver running up her back. "It's too cold and damp to be of much good—some of these papers are even damaged because of it."

Repressing a sigh, the physician began to scan through a heavy, leather-bound tome.

_We'll find you._

§

Hard blue eyes scanned the room that used to serve as his stepfather's cigar room.1 The luxurious leather sitting chairs were layered with dust and sported molding. The once-grand Persian rug that rested by the empty grate was tattered and faded. Even the masculine, burgundy, wallpaper was chalky and flaked.

Seto Kaiba smirked a little as he imagined Gozobora's reaction to the summer home he had been so damn proud of. Of course... this also meant that his stepfather probably hadn't visited the manor. He would never stand for it to rot in this filth. His smirk fell as his eyes trailed across the deadened fireplace, and the sharp poker hung up delicately beside it.

_That... that is the one._..His mind slipped into memory.

_The powerful grip on his collar yanked him to his feet and half-stumbling; forced him out the door and down the hall. Feeling his airway constricted, the boy automatically struggled to loosen the hand around his starched clothing._

_"Stop pulling, boy!" The man threw him down, letting him tumble across the carpet; gasping for air and glaring up angrily at his adoptive father. He repressed the desire to rub at his abused throat._

_"You fell asleep in your studies again, **Seto**." It was as if the name was vile, and needed to be spit out immediately. His cruel, dark eyes glimmered in the dim firelight of the cigar room._

_"I am sorry, Gozobora Sir." The boy looked down, staring mutinously at the floor. "I have failed you." He gave up making excuses a long time ago._

_"Seto," The businessman clasped his hands behind his back; stony. "You are the successor of my company. I **will not** have all of my work go down the drain because my son is a lazy brat; is that understood?"_

_The child's knuckles whitened against the threads of the carpet; blue eyes narrowed. "Yes sir."_

_"Good," The Kaiba patriarch nodded, breaking out into a tiny, malicious smirk. "Then I am sure you agree that you must be punished in order to prevent further incident."_

_The brunette visibly tensed, silent for a breath. "Yes Gozobora, Sir."_

_"Hm," The broad man narrowed his eyes and stepped past his adoptive son; unhooking the fire poker from its resting place. It was black metal with an ornate, curving arrowhead. For a few minutes, he simply touched it to the red hot embers, occasionally moving a piece of wood or coal. Seto watched from his spot, transfixed._

_The fire crackled in the quiet room, casting its orange glow over father and son. It was a lull. The boy's body relaxed a fraction._

_Gozobora struck so suddenly that Seto had just registered his movement when a burning, white-hot pain split up his thigh. _

_"AH !" He cried out before he could think to restrain himself, feeling his eyes tear up. They looked toward the source of the pain; and found the cardinal-red poker pressed against his pale flesh of his upper thigh. _

_He screamed again; smelling his own skin burning, squirming against it. Tears fell, unbidden to the floor. Blue eyes were wide; shock and agony rippling through their service._

_"You'll learn." His stepfather whispered next to his ear. "You will learn."_

_The screams were ripped were ripped from his throat; coming fast and furious and pounding themselves against the walls._

_"If you're too loud," Gozobora's voice was getting hazy. "The brat will hear you."_

_The businessman had said the magic words. The boy's throat constricted as if wrapped by a magic hand; stifling all sound. The tears trickled down, silently on the carpeting._

§

The chamber was small, 15' by 12' to be exact. A proportionally large cage took of over two-thirds of the room. It was a special caging; designed of the clear ad powerful pexiglass, used at more modern zoos to keep the animals in and allow the visitors visibility. A bright white LED hung on the ceiling like an interrogation light. The floor was thick—either cement or tiling, And everything in the room was colorless; white

He tossed her small frame back into the pexiglass cage like a sack of rags. She let out a faint 'omph' as she hit the ground hard; bruising her already sore skin.

"Stupid little bitch, brown-haired cun..." The burly man's voice drifted off as he strode away from the prison and the girl he had just tormented.

A shield of raggedy hair covered her face as the bloodied child attempted to lift herself up on her forearms.

"You know," Her guard appeared, watching as she panted with the simple exertion of moving her legs under her. "It wouldn't be so bad if you didn't fight back."

Quaking under the pressure of forcing herself into kneeling position; her words came out in ragged streams. "Like I... that doesn't...hurt. My parents used to... do worse!" She thrust her head forward; her olive eyes glimmering under the unrelenting LED white light above her head. "I will not give in to that shit!"

Her voice rang out in the confined space, leaving utter silence in its wake.

The exertion became too much for her tiny body and she fell on her hands and knees again; struggling while the young guard watched with wide eyes.

"Besides," She spat out, forcing him to look her in the eye. "It's not as though you give a damn about me. I'm your meal-ticket, right?"

He narrowed his eyes, turning so his features were cast in the shadow of the bright light.

Her heavy breathing filled in the unsaid words. A moment passed, and then another...

"You got a name, brat?"

Coughing up a little blood; she swiped her chin. The loss of one supporting hand caused the girl to tumble back onto the cement flooring; hard. There was a heavy thud and the guard peered at the prone body from the corner of his eye. His forehead creased.

"Hey..." He murmured. Getting no response, the watcher turned himself around completely. "Oi, Brat!" Still no reply. He took a few hurried steps forward, eyes glued to the unmoving, battered shape. "Hey! Kid you better say something or I'll—"

"Talla." The voice was so soft her paused to make sure he hadn't imagined it.

The girl gave another hacking cough, rolling onto her back and gazing listlessly at the light on her ceiling. "My name..." Her voice was rapidly fading into a murmur as her sight melded in-and-out. "...is Talla."

"Uh..." The guard removed his hands from the pexiglass walling; half-surprised to find them there. Slowly, a smirk found its way under his long platinum bangs. "Talla huh?"

By her suddenly regulated, if labored, breathing; the man knew she had passed out/fallen asleep in her cell. "You're something else, you know that brat?"

There was relief in his navy-colored eyes as he watched her sleep away her injuries.

"...It's Cid." He answered her unasked question in a murmur.

"You're a funny kid, Talla." His gaze shifted downward, toward the sterile tiling. "And I've got nothing personal against you, but..."

Cid stepped back into the shadow, cloaking himself in their familiarity. "But a man's got to do what a man's got to do... You seem to understand."

His smirk became a bitter, twisted grin. "After all, you're just my meal ticket."

His blue eyes shut, attempting to block out the sounds of a child's obnoxious snores through fractured ribs.

§

"S...eto?" The call died on her lips as she found the upstairs cigar room. Her hawk-like irises contracted, breathing hitched at the sight waiting for her just two flights up.

The impassive man was frozen underneath his casual clothes, the red hairs prickling the nape of his neck and chartreuse eyes were distanced, looking far off into the future, or past...

_His hands._.. She registered, her sight drifting down his torso. _...they're shaking. _

_And... that look... _He was facing away from her at an angle, allowing her to catch the shadow falling across his brow, and the dilation of one, steely blue eye. _He's... horrified._

"Se—" Kestrel coughed harshly, snapping the scene into shreds. "Seto..." She coughed again, balling her hand to muffle the noise.

Stirred from his memories; he raked a rough hand through his recently reddened locks, pulling tight. _I don't have. Time. For. This. _

Kaiba gritted his teeth, choking the visions down into that dark corner of his mind. Finally under control again, he rounded on the rival CEO.

"What the hell are you doing?" He snarled. "You're supposed to be investigating downstairs! Why are you up here?"

_Seto are you..._Kestrel wondered, observing him with professionalism and ignoring the harsh words he intended to turn into a shield. _...hurting?_

Her silent, scanning look only served to infuriate him more. "Do you not want to find your adoptive daughter? Is your will so weak you give up now? Is that it?"

He took a few angry steps toward her, using his height advantage to roar in her ear. For her part, the slighter woman didn't back an inch. Finally out of breath, the older brother paused in his ranting.

"Seto," Amun murmured, something flickering in and out of her features, just out of his keen sight. "Are you..."

Ah, there it was. Concern.

"Alright?"

He had bitten off her leg and she had pat his head. All of the sudden, Kaiba felt ill.

He turned away, putting a few feet between them before replying to the wall. "I'm fine."

His steps echoed in the halls as the businessman vanished through the door frame.

Kestrel followed his tall, lean frame through the empty space, straining against the darkness to watch him walk. Step. Step. Step.

He was gone.

She paused, gathering herself up once again. The recently stripped hair covered her visage like a veil of molten white-gold. Her head tilted downward, taking in and releasing breaths with systematic rhythm. The working hands clenched and unclenched, slowly releasing the tightness in her body.

_It's this house._ The elder sister realized suddenly, turning her head upwards so quickly that the hair ran away from it like water. Amber eyes glowed wide._ It's the house and the memories of his childhood with his adoptive father... That's what cuts him so deep._ The minor epiphany came and went, leaving a sudden fuel of drive in the medic. _I have to find something from Gozobora fast... I have to put all of my energies into locating anything that might give us a clue for where to find the kids... That way, Seto can leave this place sooner._

Her steps were quick, sharp, and quiet on the hardwood floor as she once again took the down stairs toward the dreary, wet downstairs of the deserted summer villa. Her jaw line formed a firm line with determination.

_Because the sooner we are able to leave this house; the better off he is. He's too stubborn to go and wait for me to find something; too proud to admit his own wounds. So all I can do—_

She turned sharply, forcing the large double doors open and staring into the gloom defiantly.

_—is make this as quick as possible... draw all the poison as soon as possible._

She coughed, feeling something wet and sticky spray onto her hand with the force of the hack.

She wiped it off quickly, refusing to look down and examine its color.

§

"So...that's pretty much it." Yugi finished lamely, staring a bit wearily into the dregs of his cup.

The sun was beginning to shimmer from the open kitchen window; and the little cow clock hanging from the wall read some time after six. There was a murky, sort of dusky atmosphere between the two friends sitting at the small dining table. The clock ticked in the pervading silence; and Yugi wondered if he should lift his head up to see Joey's facial expression. It seemed, suddenly at that time, to be a great effort.

Wheeler's clothes rustled as he stretched his hands languidly behind his head; sighing. The movement caused the shorter boy to look up at him. Joey gazed idly at the lines of sunlight drawn across the ceiling in perfect little shapes. Finally, his lips formed a strange sort of half-smile and he closed the amber eyes; propping his long legs against the table.

"Well... I guess we'll just have to go find them."

Yugi blinked, thinking he might have missed something. "Huh?"

Amber eyes opened and fixated on his best friend with the strangest look. It was a sad, knowing sort of smile that seemed to be keeping its thoughts silent rather then showing them. And suddenly, Mouto remembered that he and Joey were the same age. Because that smile seemed so un-Joeyish—it was soft and sincere and old... and didn't belong on the face of a teenage street-rat. There was some depth; some emotion that the other boy realized he couldn't comprehend... and would never be able to.

"Amun, she's a friend right? And even that Kaiba bastard..." The blond spoke, bringing the dueling prodigy back into the current. "We have to go after them to make sure they don't screw up, right Yug?" He winked.

And suddenly gratitude washed over the spiky-haired individual in a cascade. His purple gaze softened, and something warm ignited deep within his soul as he surveyed the simple, honest boy in front of him.

"Yeah... I guess so." He murmured.

The glow washed over the table, filling it to the brim until Wheeler stood and stretched with an audible yawn; startling Yugi.

"But for now, let's get some sleep..." He shot a look behind him toward Mouto. "'Kay?"

Yugi smiled. "Okay, I can sleep on the floor with some blankets."

Joey waved a calloused hand; back turned and already walking toward the closet. "You'll take the couch; no complaints."

"But—" The protest was already out of his mouth.

"Just shut up and go to sleep already!" Joey threw a heavy comforter at the petite figure; grinning a little. "Jeez, you really are a rude guest!"

The owner of the Millennium Puzzle paled. "S-Sorry!" He squeaked, immediately silencing himself and burying under the covers on the couch.

Chuckling at his friend's gullibility, the high-schooler spread two blankets on the floor and stole a pillow from the end of the couch; falling onto the floor without grace.

_Stupid Yugi... always worrying about other people._ He thought with a smile, already drifting off to sleep.

_Stupid Kaiba... always causing trouble for everyone!_ His forehead creased with the invisible scowl as the image of the tall, stoic CEO appeared in his head.

_Stupid Kestrel.. what did she do again? _His thoughts were getting hazy, his eyes turning into slits as they closed.

His breathing slowed, mingling with the other sleeper's as the dawn light pervaded the room; dusting it in a misty orange hue.

_I'll have to cancel my date with Mai this weekend... _Joey's last thought led him into familiar dreams of a beautiful blond with a clever smile. And a courageous boy with the guts to finally say:

"_Mai..."_

_I love you._

_§_

Green eyes winked open; slowly to adjust to the light. Everything was blurred—the familiar feel of papers under his forearms almost made him groan. Another night he had fallen asleep at work. An antique mantelpiece came into vision from the bright sunlight illuminating the room.

_I don't have a mantelpiece..._

Seto sat up, shuffling the papers under him in the movement. He blinked, his thoughts suddenly careening back to him.

Mokuba, Gozobora, the summer villa...

"Kestrel! Damn it!" He seethed under his breath; standing up fully and feeling the retribution for sleeping in such an uncomfortable position.

Kaiba glanced up at the clock on the mantelpiece and cursed again. It was past eight o'clock. He strode quickly down the stairs, scanning for the familiar head of blond.

_What time did I fall asleep? I remember looking through some of his business contracts—they might prove useful—but then what? That was at four... have I really been out four hours? We haven't really slept at all this week but to do that when time is of the essence. _

His thoughts went a thousand miles per hour and the CEO walked briskly through the hated manor; descending through the floors until the faded Peruvian carpet became the slick of marble tiling. He had reached the basement. Without introduction, he swung the door open and entered the dim landing. He paused for a brief moment, letting his eyes adjust to the gloom. His nose crinkled at the moldy smell as he stepped forward and began searching for his elusive partner.

The young man frowned. _She should be here; it was where she was searching last night... Did she go up to get some sleep?_

A noise caught his attention and he turned quickly in its direction. There was no one in sight.

"Amun?" Kaiba called into the depths; pressing forward. "Kestrel?"

The noise came again, a faint rustling; and the red-head pursued it toward the right; keeping himself sharp for anything else that might have crawled into the uninhabited basement and taken refugee in its shadows.

"Kestrel?" He called again, placing a hand on the wet wall and quickly removing it with a look of disgust.

"Ke—" Seto rounded the next corner, catching sight of the woman.

She was hunched over a large reference book, tracing some words with her finger and mouthing out something else. The recently-turned platinum locks had been bound in a tie to keep them out of her face as she read; jotting notes with her free hand onto a fair-sized pad. Feeling eyes on her back; the doctor turned and blinked at the sudden appearance of a tall, lean silhouette.

"Seto?" Amun turned away from the book and smiled at him. "Did you find anything?"

"Have you been down here the entire time?" The fugitive demanded sharply, fixated on her slender form.

The businesswoman seemed slightly surprised at his curtness; though rather amused then put out by it. "Of course... why? What time is it?"

_She's been working the entire time! _He mentally gaped. "Past eight in the morning."

Kestrel gave a short laugh. "Well that's a surprise! It is rather hard to tell time with this bad lighting though," She gestured toward the lanterns. "so, are we done here?"

"Ah," Kaiba collected himself. "Gather up anything you've found here and I'll bring some of the old business records that are useful. We should be on the road within the hour."

"Sounds good," She smiled, shutting her book and releasing a spray of dust.

Sudden coughs made Seto stop his retreat and turn around; catching the young woman nearly gasping for breath as th dust cleared.

"Sorry," She spotted him scrutinizing her. "I'm f—" A harsh coughing fit interrupted and the next thing he knew; the medic was on her knees, clutching the bookshelf for support.

Before he could think out his actions, the duelist had strode across the room and leaned down to his companion.

Amun looked up, giving him a tiny smile of apology. "Sorry, I'll be okay. It's just a little cough."

At this close proximity; he noticed a pale quality in her skin, and the tiny beads of sweat dotting her forehead.

"Are you hot, Kestrel?" The orphan spoke sharply, staring at her unyieldingly.

"Me? No... not really," Under her jeans and shirt, her body shook. "I'm actually a little cold." The medic laughed a little carelessly; and it turned into a cough she muffled in her hands.

Scowling, Seto placed one fair hand against her forehead; brushing aside the bangs carefully. He felt her tense against his touch, staring with a fair amount of shock at him. The lines on his brow deepened as he removed his fingers from her face.

"You're burning up."

Wincing, Kestrel tilted her head. "I'm fine, real—" For the second time, she was interrupted with coughs. A splash of color in the space between her fisted hand and her mouth caught his eye;and when the fit ended and the businesswoman moved her hand away, he snatched it.

She looked at him, holding her and glaring at her; then slowly uncoiled her fingers so her smaller palm lay like an open shell in his. The clamminess was accented by the deep, crimson-colored blotch pooling in the center of her hand.

The genius finished his examination of the hand and turned back to the female CEO.

"Idiot." He may not be trained; but even he knew hacking up blood was a bad sign.

Ignoring the comment, Kestrel took her hand back and struggled to her feet, making a step before collapsing back; feeling something stiff catch her.

"Sorry..." Her voice was soft, and she leaned her head to look into his angry face. "Seto."

Kaiba bent his knees as her smaller frame crumbled against his.

She was out.

The businessman swore.

_I'm not the damned doctor, she is! Stupid woman, working until she made herself ill._

Staring at her hopelessly for a moment; Kaiba hoisted her up and, careful of her head, carried her out of the dreary basement and up the stairs. Due to her height, her legs dangled a little at his side and her head nestled under his chin; occasionally jostling him with movement as his hands were tucked under her knees and around her waist.

The red-haired man carried her out of the manor and down the walk-way; wishing for once that they had parked the car a little closer. Forging his way through the trees carefully; he spotted the vehicle and sat the invalid down briefly. Seto propped Kestrel against the car door, letting her head loll over as he rummaged for the keys.

The door unlocked with a click and he once more picked up the unconscious woman. She was surprisingly light.

Carefully, he lowered her into the passenger seat; making sure not to bang her knees or slide her back against the belt. After Kaiba was assured that Amun was comfortably situated; he entered the driver's seat himself and drove out of the forest; going down the windy landing to the front of his childhood summer house.

Glancing back at the sick woman; Seto exited the car and quickly entered the villa again. He went downstairs first, easily spotting the pile of notes the physician had left and scooped them up. The elder Kaiba brother walked upstairs, collecting his own papers and then headed out the front door; tossing the keys carelessly in the grass. He _wouldn't_ be coming back

The CEO threw his papers in the backseat; getting in the car and starting it up again. The sound of the engine and the jostling of the car seemed to bring Kestrel to her senses as her caramel-colored eyes opened half-way and focused on the driver as he stole out of his stepfather's manor without a second glance.

They drove over a bump and her she slid over, her head leaning resting against his shoulder. Kaiba was intensely aware of the warmth on his left side but focused on the task at hand.

"Seto..." Her tone was mellow, raw. "Sorry I'll.." She attempted to pull away from him, finding her body uncooperative.

"It's fine." He cut her off, staring straight at the road as they wove towards the main street. "Just... get better quick." He refused to look down at her; but felt the tiny smile against his shirt.

"Alright,"

Unconsciously Kestrel snuggled closer to him; dozing off once again.

Only when he was sure she was asleep again did Kaiba glance at her, taking one hand off the steering wheel to pull her hair free of the uncomfortable tie. His green eyes narrowed with concern as he felt her body heat.

_Stupid woman._

§

In the infinite darkness, a small crack of light appeared; gradually swinging open. He shut his eyes to avoid the unbareable brightess; blinking until the shadow of a man could be seen, framed at the door.

"Mokuba?" The voice questioned, moving closer to him as the boy huddled in a corner, shaking.

"It's alright," He cooed softly, smiling into the shell-shocked eyes of the child. "Leon's here to set you free."

"I'm free?" He uttered the words, his voice was raspy from unuse.

"Yes," Tabar pat the untidy black hair. "The dreams are going to stop now. Come with me."

Leon stood, a few steps ahead as the Mokuba finally collected himself and shakily stood.

"Tell Sophie," Tabar mouthed to the female attendant besid him as the boy walked over. "That the first trial of her machine was a success."

The woman looked in, observing the frightened child.

"Hai, Master."

§

A/N: Finally some romance! I'm so excited!!! What do you all think? OOC?

1Old houses often have 'cigar rooms' as rooms to greet and talk with guests.


	24. Disconjunction

_It's a crime you let it happen to me_

_Nevermind, I'll let it happen to you_

_Out of my mind, forget it, there's nothing to lose_

_But my mind and all the things I wanted_

_Everytime I get it I throw it away_

_It's a sign, I get it, I wanna stay_

_By the time I lose it I'm not afraid_

_I'm alive but I can surely fake it_

_How can I believe when this cloud hangs over me_

_You're the part of me that I don't want to see_

_Forget it_

_There's a place I see you follow me_

_Just a taste of all that might come to be_

_I'm alone but holding breath you can breathe_

_To question every answer counted_

_Just fade away_

_Please let me stay_

_Caught in your way_

_Forget it_

_Just fade away_

_Please let me stay_

_Caught in your way_

_It's a crime you let it happen to me_

_Out of mind, I love it, easy to please_

_Nevermind, forget it, just memories_

_On a page inside the spiral notebook_

_Just fade away_

_Please let me stay_

_Caught in your way_

_Forget it_

_How can I believe when this cloud hangs over me_

_You're a part of me that I don't wanna to see_

_I can live forever here._

-'_Forget It_' by Breaking Bejamin

§

_Her air made little white puffs in the chill of a starless night. Shoes long abandoned; her feet sped through the rolling mounds of gray-washed sand, slipping in between the fine grains and forcefully being pulled back out. The white shift wrinkled and folded with her movements; the death-throws of one of the white river birds. The low sound of panting was broken into intervals with desperate calls._

_"S..Seth!" The golden irises were contracted, burning in the darkness as she ran further into the desert. _

_Timeless, the arid night kept shifting without this lost, lonely woman stumbling amongst it. The wind whipped the sands under her feet, drawing out their grand design with little care for the mortal. The temperatures dropped in a complete lack of heat, chilling the atmosphere. Nothing halted, nothing watched; as she made her progression without any progress. _

_A far-off beat began to join in rhythm with her heavy breaths; but her single-mindedness missed the sound even as it grew louder._

_"Seth!" _

_"Kakra!" Hope blossomed and wilted in the same tenor. She whipped around, her hair threading itself in a ribbon to face the reply. However, it was not the man she wanted to see riding up to her with a horse so white it glimmered without light here. _

_Noting the peculiar, triangular pattern of hair on the approaching silhouette, she turned back around and continued running. _

_"Seth!" _

_"Kakra!" Yami was riding abreast to her now; the mare close enough for her to feel its warmth. _

_She still struggled along—fighting the sand so quickly slipping away at her feet. Her eyes narrowed in determination . "Seth!"_

_Atem dismounted his horse with rapid skill, chasing after the white-clad figure._

_"Seth!" Kakra ran faster now, attempting to escape the man at her back and find the one out-of-reach. "Set—" Her foot caught in the hollow of a dune; slipping in knee-deep and yanking her entire form back. _

_"Kakra!" Yami cried out in the dark when he spotted her tall form go down. Tracing her invisible steps in the black; he found her prone on the ground._

_Kakra was lying in the sand; attempting to remove her stuck leg from its sandy hell. Her other leg was parallel to it above surface; while her arms were splayed out next to her head; extending outward in some hopeless reach while her mouth tasted sand. _

_"S..Seth," Her voice was muffled by the sand as Atem reached her, sorrow in his deep violet eyes. The light hair was splayed out along the nape of her neck; resembling the delicate feathers of her namesake._

_"Seth..." A leg kicked feebly in tune with the name._

_It broke his heart. _

_The Pharaoh knelt in the sand next to his friend; still fighting in her spread-eagle position in the earth._

_"Kakra," He choked out; wrapping his arms around her thin frame and cradling her head against his chest. "He's gone. You can't go after him this time. You have to wait for him... here, with me." _

_He watched, with wet eyes, as the burning light seemed to extinguish from her bright and eyes and they melded into the somberness of the night. He felt her taut body relax with resignation; becoming dead within his grasp. Yami tightened his grip on her shoulders; trying to stop the vibrancy from pouring out of her._

_Slowly, he felt her trembling within his arms; and then a wetness on his light cotton shirt. He fixated on the woman; dull eyes letting weak tears dribble from them._

_"He won't... come back, Pharaoh." Her voice was low and heavy as the shaking increased. One hand clenched the fabric of his shirt. "That man... will kill Seth." A sob interrupted the last name and she didn't speak again; crying into her best friend's chest. _

_The Pharaoh clutched her to him; eyes tracing the long-worn trail of his cousin and companion in the desert while tears fell unnoticed from the deep eyes. _

_Their perfect triangle had broken._

_§_

"Yug... Yugi man! Hey, wake up!" He felt someone shaking his shoulders as Yami stepped into abrupt awareness.

"What?!" The boy sat up with a jolt. His small frame was trembling and the sheets tangled around his legs were damp with sweat. He blinked twice, trying to pull himself from the realm of dreams into the next; finally noticing a pair of concerned brown eyes.

"Joey?" Yugi mouthed, finally recollecting everything that had happened. Kaiba's disappearance, Mokuba's kidnapping; coming to Joey for help; borrowing Tristan's car to visit one of Gozobora's old houses in an attempt to catch up to the elusive fugitives. They had arrived at the grand manor yesterday, and found in deserted—slept the night in one of the less dusty rooms.

"Hey, you okay?" Wheeler asked, furrowing his brow in exaggerated scrutiny. "I woke up when I heard you muttering somethin' and next thing I know you were crying."

_Crying?_ The teenager touched his shaking hands to his face and sure enough; his cheeks were wet.

_Yami. _In the niche of his mind; he could still feel the spirit weeping; and it struck his heart. He gave Joey a half-smile and shook his spiky-head.

"I'm okay Joey, really. It was just a dream... but I think I'm gonna go out to get some fresh air and cool down, okay?"

Looking unconvinced, but shrugging in defeat; the mutt allowed the smaller boy to pass by him and rapidly vanish down the hall.

A few steps down and the host chose to enter the first door on his left, swinging it closed behind him before crumbling to his knees with the weight of his partner's emotion.

_Atem!_

The Egyptian answered, dragging his mental body out of its confinement and appearing as a faint contour beside the boy's body.

_"Yes, Yugi?"_

"Yami," He spoke unnecessarily out loud to the shadowy figure. "It's a little hard to see you; could you materialize a little more?"

There was a pause and the faintly-defined lines shimmered for a moment before returning to their barely-visible state.

"_Forgive me Yugi, but... this is the best I can do for now."_

The sheer weight of his connection made the youth wish he could extend his arms out and touch the man for once. The darkness of the room penetrated them both, hiding their faces and dampening the atmosphere. Ignoring it,he sent sympathy and encouragement across that invisible thread between them.

"We'll find her, Yami. I promise. We'll find both of them."

_"I believe in you Yugi."_ The phantom responded slowly. _"And I am sorry to put such a burden on you. It was just the aftershock of the memory—it was 5,000 year old feeling resurfacing; that's all."_

Yami's swift recovery was a sure sign that it was false. They had been together for long enough; bound in indescribable ways so that the line between them had begun to blur. The host knew when his parasite was trying to shield him from a personal pain.

"Kakra and you... were really good friends, weren't you?" His breath shimmered for a moment in the level moonlight; casting a tiny silver smoke.

The Phantom was silent for a long time, and Yugi wasn't compelled to rush him in the near-serene lull.

"_Yes."_

"Do you think you'll become such good friends with the Kestrel of this age?" The boy's purple eyes were blurred with sleep and shining in the creeping shadows.

Again, another pause. He was selecting his words.

"_I would like to become a special person to Amun; just like I was to Kakra in Egypt. That bond...now that I have felt it break, I wish for it again..But," _The misty light fell across his half-bitten form and for a brief moment; Yugi saw the lines of emotions drawn across the ethereal face. It was so strange, how something as insubstantial could ever seem to... heavy, the thick with turmoil.

_"I keep feeling that these dreams are trying to tell me something... like I'm doing something wrong... Do you think I'm mistaken in following Kaiba and Kestrel, Yugi?"_

The Pharaoh didn't make the unnecessary gesture of facing his host and so he replied while facing the highlighted outline of a cardboard box.

"I think that... Kaiba and Kestrel... are both people with many scars on their hearts." Atem couldn't see the tender, sweet look that had cast upon his boyish face; only the slight softening of the lips as they moved. "So many pains... so many scars; and I don't really know what happened to either of them; but... now, they have us to stand my them. I want to help heal those deep, old scars—the ones that make Kaiba so cold and Kestrel so protective. I'd like to think that right now... right now we're supposed to be helping them; healing them. And so," He looked up at Yami who had somehow ended looking at him anyway and gave a truer, stronger smile. "I'm going to find them. I believe that is what we're supposed to do."

The moon had shifted, leaving the pair in complete darkness.

Outspoken and undone, the Spirit could only give a wistful smile and nod his head in agreement.

Mouto gave a tiny sigh of relief and stood up, shaking the puzzle for good effect. "Well if you're feeling better I'm going back to bed. This old house may be creepy; but at least the mattresses are comfortable."

He could hear the Pharaoh chuckling a little and felt his own spirits raise. "_Ah, good night Yugi."_

§

Tawny eyes slid open to greet a warmly colored room, lit by a little halogen above her head.

"Uh," Kestrel slid herself forward, covering her face with her fingers before slowly removing the digits and taking in her surroundings. A red linen sheet crinkled over her legs. It had fallen down to her waist when she sat up. The shimmering platinum hair was crinkled and disordered from sleep. Carefully, she flexed both hands and tapped all ten fingers. Then she scooted each foot and then wriggled each toe. All extremities, check. Her fingers grazed below her breasts, lightly putting pressure down her rib-cage and then coming to do a quick rest above her heart. Ribs intact? Check. Pulse? High but not dangerous.

"So, the princess finally decided to grace me with her presence."

The voice startled her in the middle of her self-assessment and she whipped her head around to fixate on the newcomer.

Seto Kaiba had a faintly haggered look accented by the changes that had been done to disguise his person. The red hair had lost its styled cut and the green irises clashed with red veins in the eye-sockets. Dark circles added to the pallor of his skin and a long frown betrayed his poor temperament.

"Seto," She greeted quietly. "How long have I been out?"

He had been sitting on a rather small armchair that forced his long legs into a seemingly uncomfortable angle; a blanket settling behind it.

"Three days. I got the hotel doctor to take a look at you; but besides the fever you weren't showing any other symptoms so he simply gave me some cheap fever-reducer. I didn't want to risk taking you to the hospital and being exposed, so..."

A sudden though popped into her mind and suddenly the medic scrutinized her companion. "Did you sleep there?"

Olive eyes narrowed, and he stood; trying to ignore the stiffness in his legs. "If you're feeling better then we can go. I'll go check out."

Before Kestrel could protest, the CEO had clicked the door shut behind him.

Amun sighed and removed the thin sheet from her body. She was drenched in sweat from the fever and the only thing she could really think of right now was a shower. Stumbling a little; the woman made her way to the bathroom and stripped of the sweat-soaked clothes. She twisted the water on cool, letting the temperature revitalize her senses.

_I can't believe we lost three days! Every day means that Talla and Mokuba are..._

The hotel shampoo smelled like citrus as she massaged it into her scalp. The grime of several days slipped between her fingers, running down the silver drain.

_And Seto... he's been in that chair.. by my side... all this time. _

The conditioner slipped from her grasp and by the time Kestrel blinked enough to see it she realized that the shower-head wasn't the only thing that was pouring water on her face.

Long fingers came up to graze her cheek.

_Am I... crying?_

She knelt down, naked as the water tittered around her and suddenly the tears came harder, racking her form. Kestrel covered her mouth, muffling any sound.

_Why am I... Why am I like this, all of the sudden?_

_It's as though... someone else's sorrow... from another time..._

"What?" She murmured, fisting the blond locks and inhaling slowly.

_Why am I thinking about this... about Seto... in this way?_

_I don't... my feelings in this... don't mean anything. There is something I am trying to do. Something I **must** do... right? _

_For her? For my little sister... that is why I am here..._

_So then why is it I can think about..._

"Talla..." The water poured all around her, smacking into the tile and trailing off as she hugged her knees, skin sliding wetly upon skin.

"...r_egrette_."

§

When Akio Shinobu came back into his hotel room after packing up and paying for the room; he found his new wife already dressed and casually pulling a brush through her fair hair. Upon his entrance, Rina turned to him and smiled.

"You're ready?" He demanded, green eyes roving the room for any spot he might have missed.

"Ah," She responded, sticking the brush into a handbag she seemed to whip out of nowhere.

"Good," He turned, running a hand through his own hair before striding toward the door.

"Seto," Rina stood up, a few steps behind him and with an unidentifiable glint in her amber eyes.

"Hm?" The fugitive acknowledged her call with a slight turn of his head.

She cocked her head in that very Kestrel-like way and seemed to be debating her words for a moment.

"Kestrel..." Kaiba reprimanded impatiently.

"Thank you," Amun said swiftly, deciding on what to say with a slight grin. "Thank you."

"Uh?" The man blinked once; either in response to her radiant smile or the sudden exclamation.

Kestrel gave a little chuckle and then moved gracefully to his side, swinging past him to the door and looking back. "Let's go; Mr. Shinobu."

"A—ah," He agreed slowly, following after his companion out of the hotel.

She hovered by the driver's door; either remembering that she was not the driver or else considering putting up a fight for the driving rights.

Golden eyes fixated on him for a moment, and then her figure purposely glided to the passenger seat.

_I wonder what..._The man shook the thought from his head and frowned. There was no time to figure out what went on in the metallurgy of ideals that made up Amun. Rather, it would be much more productive to simply get into the car and begin their already delayed journey.

Once they had pulled out and were in the secretive safe of their car on the highway; the medic turned to face him. "So, where are we headed to next, Seto?"

It relaxed him slightly to hear his real name; after three days of being on edge about keeping up the fake identity with the hotel staff. He felt his shoulders drop a fraction and pulled the blinker light on as he answered.

"Fukushima—The Kaiba Corp finance center is located there. Gozobora will probably try to take out some funds from it with his old shares. They were transferred there due to his death, and I want to see if they were pulled."

The businesswoman blinked. "But when your stepfather supposedly died, wouldn't his stocks have been transferred to you?"

_Of course._ As he traveled more with the woman; Kaiba forgot that Kestrel was blissfully ignorant of his relationship status with the cold man who had adopted him.

He smirked. "Usually it would. However, before he had a heart attack—or faked it—he wrote into his will that neither Mokuba or I were to receive any of his shares. Instead, they were put in a dead vault in the finance center. They've always been there; but the value he personally owned was little over a thousand so I never bothered with it."

"So, he would rather let pieces of his company rot... than let you have them?" Her voice had softened, decreasing to a mere murmur.

Pathetic.

"That is the kind... of man he was." Seto responded, feeling the term man might be a bit generous on his part.

They drove on in quiet; the faint swish of passing car filling in the empty air. Eyes focused on the road, the young CEO felt her turn to him again; rather than catch the bright shimmer of her hair as it moved.

"I'm sorry." The adoptive mother really did look it too; as she gazed listlessly out of the windshield. "I knew that you and your stepfather didn't get along from your reaction at the manor but... I had no idea... that someone," Her lips seemed to define each word, tasting it as it escaped her tongue. "could loathe you so much. I'm sorry."

When she finally looked him full in the face, Seto wished she hadn't. The open offering in them was almost more than he could bare.

"Hm. It doesn't matter any more. We'll find Mokuba and Talla, and then Gozobora can go live in the Bermudas for all I care." His tone was defined and biting; the young man's attention still on the road.

"Ah...We will, Seto."

_No matter what else comes._

§

"Uh...Ah!" Joey swiped the sleep from his eyes as he peered in at his best friend. After wandering off late last night; the boy had never come back. When he woke up, Yugi had still been missing. Anxious, the blond began his search through the desecrated mansion.

After nearly an hour of wrong turns and dingy rooms; he managed to find the duelist.

Asleep. In his pajamas. On a couch. Against a wall. Drooling.

Exhausted once relief kicked in; Joey noticed the crack of violet that peered from half-asleep eyes.

"Joey.." He muttered in semi-conscious.

Hell no. He had kept him up all morning. He did not get to sleep now.

"Ah! Yugi, damn it! Here I was all worried that Kaiba's dad had some creepy sort of haunted house that trapped you or ate you or something and what do I find?" Wheeler waved his hands in dramatization; his face contorting into several different expressions so that the now-awake Mouto had to bite his lip to keep from laughing.

"YOU!" He pointed a finger dangerously. "HERE! Asleep like everything is okay! We-l-l-; _excuse_ me for giving a damn about you! Next time we stay in some creepy old manor; I'm going to sleep in the car and you can get kidnapped by mutant zombies for all I care!"

Smiling to contain the bubbles of laughter at his friend's antics; Yugi sat up and ran a loose hand through his hair. "Sorry about that Joey. I didn't mean to worry you. It was just dark and really late and I was really tired and I couldn't really..." He blushed. "...find my way back."

As Joey caught the mumbled explanation he sat on the floor with a thud; sighing in defeat.

The pair sat in the room; allowing the morning light to wafer through and illuminate the thick layers of dust around them. It was a companionable silence, the two teens reflecting on their nights work.

"Well," Joey spoke finally; his voice muted from before. The unruly bangs his hid features from the boy elevated on the couch. "We should pack up and leave here; unless you found something useful. Each second we spend here; rich boy and Kestrel get farther away..."

"Joey..." Yugi whispers.

He may be a street punk; but Wheeler always manages to surprise him even with the oldest of antics. In fact, its rather as though the real Joey—that little boy separated by his sister and abandoned by his mother to an abusive father—the child behind the bullying and the stupidity; that was the one that still got to him. Those quick, unobtrusive glances at someone else.

"I'm going to see if maybe this dump can muster up some water for a shower." He stood up and just like that, he was just another delinquent with a mildly bitter smile; walking out the open door.

"A-Ah," Yugi agreed slowly, stumbling to get up and follow his friend. He slipped, however, on some kind of folder that had been pulled off its shelf along with several other records; landing face-first on the unforgiving hardwood with a warm blanket from last night tangled up in his legs.

"Omph...Ow." The host muttered, rubbing at the small bump on the side of his head and wincing. He cast a mean glance as the offending folder and spotted the title in fine, black lettering.

Violet eyes blinked, processing just what the name meant; before folding his legs back to a sitting position and picking the folder up.

Clumsily, his fingers slid on the seam and the stack of paper inside emptied out onto the blanket and floor.

The blacks of his gaze grew, drowning out the amethyst pool as they scanned the strewn out contents of the folder.

Old photographs, a signature, a black-and-white newspaper clipping... business papers. They were bound together in the standardization of the black-and-white labels.

Yugi struggled to stand up, kicking the blanket aggressively from his feet as he fingered the series of papers with a growing look of shock.

"JOEY!"

§

Above her guarded door, his large frame stood tall like some ominous mountain hunkering over her cage.

Eyes narrowed and brow furrowed in a raw mixture of anger and disgust, she wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth with a dirty, clenched fist.

"This can stop whenever you want it to, _Mikage Tallake_" Gozobora punctuated her name carefully; running his broad fingers over a riding crop lovingly.

"My name..."She lifted her head so the overgrown bangs fell away from her face; leaving the burning; evergreen-hazel eyes glaring up at him with recklessness bordering madness. A twisted sort of smile blossomed upon her lips, which were busted and chapped bright red.

"is **TALLA AMUN**!"

A sleeve of spit from the proclamation landed on the man's shaved cheek and he winced; wiping it with a look of furious retribution. "Fine then." He opened the door of the prison and shut if quietly, firmly behind them. The oldest Kaiba brandished the riding crop, advancing on the dwarfed girl. "We'll see how deep your loyalty to that false saint lies in your blood..."

He smacked it against his palm with an audible snap.

§

A/N: It's **International Peace Day**. So take a day to put your dissimilarities aside and walk within the breath of one another. For only hand-in-hand; can we allow the darkness to fall behind us and walk toward the light of Future. Believe in Tomorrow today.


	25. Promises to keep before I sleep

_When you walk away, you don't hear me say,  
please, oh baby, don't go,  
Simple and Clean is the way that you're making me feel tonight,  
it's hard to let it go _

You're giving me  
too many things lately,  
you're all I need  
You smiled at me and said,  
"Don't get me wrong I love you,  
but does that mean I have to meet, your father?"  
When we are older you'll understand,  
what I meant when I said "no",  
I don't think life is quite that simple,

When you walk away,  
you don't hear me say,  
please, oh baby, don't go,  
Simple and Clean is the way that you're making me feel tonight,  
it's hard to let it go

The daily things,  
that keep us all busy,  
are confusing me,  
that's when you came to me, and said,  
"Wish I could prove I love you,  
but does that mean I have to walk on water?"  
"When we are older you'll understand,  
it's enough when I say so,  
And maybe, some things are quite that simple

When you walk away, you don't hear me say,  
please, oh baby, don't go,  
Simple and Clean is the way that you're making me feel tonight,  
it's hard to let it go

Hold me  
whatever lies beyond this morning,  
is a little later on,  
regardless of warnings,  
the future doesn't scare me at all,  
nothings like before...

When you walk away, you don't hear me say,  
please, oh baby, don't go,  
Simple and Clean is the way that you're making me feel tonight,  
it's hard to let it go

Hold me  
whatever lies beyond this morning,  
is a little later on,  
regardless of warnings,  
the future doesn't scare me at all,  
nothings like before... 

_-'Simple and Clean' _by Utada Hikaru

§

The vaults at Fukushima could have rivaled a Swiss account. The entire thing was a labyrinth of silver walls and Plexiglas windows. The sliding double doors at the entrance were guarded by a frightful pair of guards and a host of acutely accurate lasers. Every attendant was dressed in the standard black-and-white cashmere uniform; a fitting curvature for the woman and tapered collars for the men. A dark, square hat was firmly situated upon each politely incurious face. Clean, indistinct flats roamed across marble floors with a polished pallor. The computers at every other desk were linked by a series of five networks, to provide for if one crashed; or almost inconceivably—was hacked into. Each 8 by 11'' module was continuously updated with deposits and withdrawals, the international stock market, and a national police report detailing any on-the-run criminals. Cameras stood out against the sterile hue of the building; hundreds of indiscriminate eyes that watched the scurry of mortals below. Like flies. Like gods. This was the Kaiba Corp finance center. The very place where wanted fugitives Seto Kaiba and Kestrel Amun were walking into.

As Kestrel strode into the building she felt tension steel beneath her limbs, making her eyes sharp to movement and simple contour. Seto had briefed her on the security of the finance center, having assisted in its design a few years back. It was enough to put her on edge any day, much more when she was quite sure that all of those computers had both of their photos slapped across it somewhere with the words 'call police if seen' nearby. When Kaiba walked proudly in like he owned the place and began to order the front desk attendant, she almost had an aneurysm; though the only visible sign was a slight stiffening of the shoulders as she followed with a gleam of platinum. Yet as they walked and no SWAT team appeared; Amun finally realized what would allow them to slide through the bank; at least this far.

They were no longer Kaiba Seto and Amun Kestrel. They were Akio and Rina Shinobu.

The concept made her shiver with potential. For with anonymity came freedom... and wandering.

"What was your identification number, Mr. Shinobu?" The medic was brought out of her private introspect by the distant, cultured tone of the young woman whom they had been guided to. Swiftly, her amber eyes trailed up to her red-haired companion. His stoic, starkly beautiful face gave away no hint of his plan.

_Of course we can't use Gozobora's actual number. _She looked for the green of his eyes, silent. _They probably have the vault on watch because Seto is a fugitive and it would be obvious for him to come here and retrieve money to get out of the country... _

They had found the number back at the manor. Of course, she had no idea what the random collection of figures meant next to the initials, K.C.F—vault. His adoptive son has known though, and now the thrown-together pair were here.

"539GLK07J1." She froze, blinking and biting her tongue to keep from yelping... or sighing. She wasn't sure which of the two she felt like doing more at the moment. Yet, looking at his cool form, brazen and in-control so close to slipping up, Amun stayed mute with automatic trust in the man before her. She had faith in his abilities, belief in his intellect. She would follow along until he signaled for her to play a part.

The disinterested eyes of the attendant sharpened a little as her fingers rapidly typed in the number Kaiba had given her. Keeping a crisp, smooth face she glanced back up. "The vault of Gozobora Kaiba? Are you sure this is the right one?"

Amun could almost feel her fingers reaching for the security button hidden under the woman's desk.

"I am an employee of Kaiba Corp." Seto didn't allow his faintly annoyed, superior visage to crack. "Mr. Rolland is currently in charge, as _both_ Kaibas are indisposed of..." Kestrel's trained senses caught his emphasis. "...and he has asked that I check up on this account. I trust the identification number is correct. May we proceed?"

The sharp-faced attendant let her stare linger for a moment on his face, and then focused once more on the computer screen. "Very well. May I have the verification?"

The slightest smirk highlighting his face, he read off the password they had memorized at the mansion. Crumbled on a little slip of paper... forgotten and left discarded...

"HAON."

With four swift little taps, the computer emitted a happy-sounding ding and she stood up with a nod. "Follow me this way please."

It was only then that Kaiba looked back at his supposed wife. His smirk was smoldering and she couldn't help but feel her lips upturn a little too.

§

"This is Kaiba's handwriting! Look!" Yugi pointed out the familiar scrawl on a scrap sheet of paper. It was a half-page; with the left side torn and pocketed with indents from fingers. The remaining text now read:

_...At Fukushima, contains one share. _Beside the neatly typed words was a hasty, precise handwriting.

_Check Gozobora's vault._

"Hehe, that's definitely pretty boy's scribble. It's almost as stiff as him!" Joey chuckled over his shoulder.

Ignoring his best friend's comment, Yugi concentrated on the words. "Fukushima... what's at Fukushima?"

"Got me beat Yug. Never heard of the place."

Lining his brow in concentration, he focused on their last line to Kaiba and Kestrel. Suddenly, something clicked.

The boy straightened up so fast that the movement sent Wheeler sprawling on the ground with a thud and an audible, "Oomph!"

The King of Games side-stepped the taller boy, scanning the room quickly.

_I remember when I came in here last night... I tripped over that book... Where is it..._

Violet eyes caught sight of the thick tome, laying crookedly on its side with pages exposed from where he had kicked it in the dark. His short legs strode over toward the book in small strides and he picked it up. Narrowing his eyes in focus, he began to finger through the pages.

Still rubbing his abused tail-bone from the ground, Joey stared warily at Mouto with one amber eye.

"What is that thing?" He grumbled, still sore about the neglect he was receiving.

Yugi continued to flip through the pages. "It's a book of maps I stumbled across last night. If I can find... Aha!" His fingers stopped sorting through the pages and instead trailed over the current spread. He pointed at a certain point within the map. "Got it!"

Two amber eyes now open, Joey shook the dust of his body and walked over to the King of Games. "What is it?"

The spiky-haired prodigy smiled triumphantly and lifted the book up to the blond's level; pointing at a section of the map. "Look, this one is less than three years old and Fukushima is marked on it. Guess what's in Fukushima?"

Following the invisible line of the finger, Joey stared at the map. His eyes widened. "No way!"

There, painstakingly written in black ink and marked with a little dot were the words, _Kaiba Corp Finances. _

"This is it Joey!" He was practically jumping with excitement. "This is where Kaiba and Kestrel went after this house! If we hurry, we may be able to catch up with them."

Wheeler took one look at the boy's ecstatic face and sighed. "All right pack up and get into the car. We're skipping breakfast I guess..."

However, Yugi was already gone, throwing their meager supplies into the car and gathering anything useful they had found in the manor. He sighed again, thumbing the innocent little dot. His gaze narrowed.

"You'd better be okay bastard..." His frown softened a little; a sad warmth working over the muddled eyes. "...you too, crazy car driver."

§

_"Talla," She was smiling again as she sat down at the dining table. Montague had just finished laying out the last dish on the table, dressed in a ridiculous looking apron and chefs hat to cover his rapidly deteriorating hair. Following the woman was the final occupant of their odd little house. His shoulder-length black hair was let loose, falling wildly about the rugged face. Hajime gave her a single questioning glance before settling down next to Kestrel and piling his plate with food. She waited patiently in her seat for the cook to arrive, still dressed as a medical intern. Talla shuffled uncomfortably in her seat; half-tempted to follow the man's example and steal some food. However, Montague returned and sat down beside her before she could move. Removing his apron, the Hispanic sent a filthy look at the younger man, who smiled back with full cheeks._

_"Thank you so much for dinner Montague," Kestrel intervened before words could be exchanged. She was still smiling. "It looks wonderful."_

_Predictably, the aging man puffed slightly with the compliment and softened; trying not to look to pleased with himself. "You at least need a decent meal after all the hours you put in at work. I have no objection to feeding people who _help out_." His deliberate emphasis was followed by a blunt gaze in the direction of the culprit._

_Not even glancing up, Hajime responded. "Now Montague, my dear friend, don' be too hard on yourself. I am sure that actin' like a housewife takes a lot o' effort."_

_Talla chortled on her soup as Montague made a disgusted clicking noise with his tongue._

_"At least I do something, Mr. Koya." He uttered with utter superiority. "What benefit do you bring to the table tonight?"_

_Hajime winked. "Why, my charming personality, o' course!"_

_A string of foul foreign words exited Montague's mouth._

_"You two..." Kestrel uttered softly, half-amused, half-exasperated curve to her lips as she watched their banter._

_"Me no hable en Spanish." Hajime said with a butchered accent. "Comprendo?"_

_"Foul-mouthed brat! Don't test me!"_

_"Now, 'ow coul' I translate that, friend?" He asked between chewing. "El stupide Mehican?"_

_"Hajime..." Amun was biting back a smile._

_"You can't even speak one language right, gringos!" The chef brandished his fork like a bayonet; comically furious._

_"Montague..." She chocked back a laugh._

_Deciding that the banter had sufficiently served to lighten the atmosphere and prove distraction for the two men, Talla thought it was time to pop her question on the unsuspecting adoptive mother. She picked up her fork and clawed at the food, keeping her eyes lowered onto it and feigning casualness._

_"Hey... Kestrel."_

_Blinking and turning away from the arguing men, the student turned to her adoptive daughter. "Yes, Talla? Is there anything you need?"_

_Eyes still lowered, she shrugged in an attempt at nonchalance. "Well I was just wondering... we've been traveling a lot and I've seen a lot of new places..."_

_The tawny-haired woman frowned; concern etching itself across her smooth brow. "Is it bothering you? I know nothing is stable right now and I guess it would be hard for you to make new friends with all the different schools. I'm sorry Talla sometimes I forget that—"_

_Talla waved her hands exuberantly to cut the woman off. "No! No! It's not that. I like traveling with you, really I do." _

_A skeptical eye scanned her face and then Kestrel slowly smiled, relaxing in her seat. "All right then, what is it?"_

_Talla had practiced this speech several times before. Now she could simply roll on it. The green eyes looked up, scrutinizing her new caretaker._

_"You see I was wondering, I know you said that if there was somewhere I wanted to go, you would try to make it happen..."_

_Her golden brow arched in surprise. "Have you found someplace you would like to visit?"_

_Talla nodded. She felt Hajime's stray eye on her and puffed forward. "I was thinking about France." _

_It was as if her words were magic. _

_The bickering in the background fell stiff, as if both men had been struck mute. Hajime was still and unreadable, Montague tensed and focused on the females. Kestrel, however, had done a complete 180. As soon as the words were out, her open appreciation had turned to horrified shock, as if the girl had suggested that they go to Auschwitz for Christmas. Then, in a matter of seconds it went through a myriad of emotions. Fear. Pain. Reminiscing. They cast shadows on her features. And that suddenly a cold hollowness took its liberty on her face. A marble smile carved its way on the empty facade._

_"I don't think..." Her voice was a murmur, a phantom of itself. At that moment, Talla regretted ever bringing it up. Damn her and her insatiable curiosity. "That will be possible..."_

_She stood, and Montague made a helpless movement. She cast them all a horribly chipping smile; like some imp had seized her body and was manipulating it with foreign emotions. "Dinner was wonderful, Montague, thank you."_

_"Kestrel..." He mouthed wordlessly, nodding unhappily._

_She closed her eyes with the force of the grin, cocking her head. "I think I'm going to retire early tonight. Goodnight everyone."_

_No sound echoed in the small dining room as her soft steps fell up the stairs. She past out of sight for a few seconds, no one breathing. And then the door clicked shut and the air, which had been frozen a moment before, was furious._

_Montague was standing, his comical face in absolute outrage. The humorous quality of his annoyance had been replaced and when he hissed through his teeth there was venom in his tone._

_"You put her up to this!"_

_Talla opened her mouth to defend Hajime instantly, even through a lie. But he beat her too it, still seated and looking coldly defiant; arms crossed._

_"She picked it up herself Montague. It's her right to know."_

_"If Kestrel wanted the girl to know she would have told her herself!" The hushed slice of his voice made Talla shrink. She had never seen him so mad. It was the first time Montague had called Kestrel by her first name._

_Hajime, however, stood his ground with fiery dark eyes under the veil of long, black hair. "That gal doesn't do what's good 'or her and you know it! She can't hide all o' this! I won' t watch her go back to the way she was, damn the consequences!" His slow, friendly drawl had been replaced with a rising fury checked only by the woman upstairs._

_Talla felt herself shrinking into the chair, totally ignorant of what was going on. She was the one who had noticed that out of all the places they went, they steered clear of anywhere near Eastern Europe. She confronted Hajime about it and he had stared at her with a strange expression before confiding. He told her that if she was truly curious, to ask Kestrel about France. Whatever Talla had expected, it wasn't this._

_"You aren't helping her!" Montague was red in the face. "You—foul Spanish phrases—are hurting her! YOU are killing her!"_

_Something he had said struck the cool, black-haired man as he stood up with amazing lithe; slamming his fists on the table. "How dare you—"_

_"You are a child who wants to tell everyone about the pain of the past as a way to express it!" Montague continued, ignoring the interruption. "You looked toward a child--" One dark finger pointed accusingly at Talla. "--to bear your suffering! You are not doing this to help her! You are selfishly pouring your own wounds on someone new! Will you hurt someone else like you hurt her, Hajime? You would kill her by bringing up the past to heal yourself, you sorry piece of shit!" Montague was breathing heavily after the exertion, his skin many tones of purple and red and still just as furious. Hajme was stock still, both wild, dark eyes cracked within the ashen face. No one moved._

_And then Hajime broke. He whizzed out of the dining room, scattering into other rooms with a miscellaneous of items gathering in his hands. And then he was at the door. He was crossing the threshold._

_"Hajime!" Talla finally found her voice, released of the slowly decreasing tension in the air. She raced to the door. "Wait! It's my fault! Please don't go!" There were tears biting the corner of her eyes, hovering over the curve of her cheek._

_Hajme had his back to her, a battered overcoat pulled over his limber frame. The door was open, rain pattering evenly outside. _

_"You'll need to make her laugh everyday, kid." His voice was barely controlled, choking back a sob. "To make up for what I've done."_

_Talla didn't move, letting the tears fall from her eyes just like the rain that swallowed him up._

_Hajime was gone._

_Belatedly, she ran to the door. _

_"I will!" She screamed at the rain, feeling sick and lost and broken. Their family. Her new family. Was already shattering. She fell to her knees, letting the rain coat her head and stride across her hair. "I will..." She sobbed to the ground, shaking with cold._

_"I will stay be her side... no matter what."_

_§_

"You know it wouldn't be so bad if you didn't fight." His words were the line between dream and conscience, bringing her back to the cold stint of reality.

"Like hell." She managed to swear, propping herself up on her elbows and feeling the deep gouges on her back. The movement caused pain to sear up her body and she hissed between her teeth.

"Look kid, Gozobora's a monster—"

"You would know." Her voice cut him off in a murmur as she pushed upward again with her forearms, half dragging the lower half of her body.

Cid frowned. "Look, all I'm saying is that you can't win! Just give in feed him some bullshit or whatever else he wants and save both of us some time."

Her reply was held. Talla managed to get herself into a half-seated, half-laying position when one of the gouges on her back decided to split open again. With a gasp of pain the girl slid back to the floor, taking deep breaths and fighting against nausea and unconsciousness that threatened to steal her away again. Feeling her vision clearing, she deemed it safe to respond.

"I won't betray her."

"Eh?" The words were uttered so low he wasn't sure he had heard them. The jailer took a few more steps toward the cell, leaning in against a wall.

"I won't betray _Kess_." The adoptive daughter emphasized the woman's name like a spell, resting her chin on her arms as she lay on the merciless concrete, blood pooling around her. Her eyes rolled at him and Cid was forcefully reminded of a tiger; feline eyes glowing in the darkness, completely superior to him. "Why the fuck would you care anyway? You're my _keeper_, remember?"

The man looked away, hiding his downcast eyes through the long blond bangs and nonchalance. "Because, brat, I have to clean up your blood. The worse you make it the more work I have to do."

She chuckled darkly, ending in a hacking cough that scattered red across the floor. Her eyes fluttered; a slow smile working its way onto her face. "Is that it, then?"

Cid scowled, turning away with a humph. "If that person who you're protecting really cares about you; they'd want you to give them up to save yourself."

Talla snorted, allowing her eyes to drop shut and her back to shudder. "I am sure... that she would be furious with me now for going so far, but..." She exhaled, her breathing becoming slower as darkness crept into her vision. "...but like Hajim...I promised..." her voice was fading as she fell deeper into surreality. "...to stand by her... no matter what...fill her days with... laughter..." She gave the tiniest smile and her words became a whisper. "...never letting go."

The man stood by her cage for a while, leaning against the cool material and staring at the bloodied heap of a girl. In a few hours Gozobora would return to work on her; but for now she slept. His eyes fell on her face, filled with satisfaction despite the pain that was inevitably wracking her body. The soft sigh of her breathing filled the air.

"It was Kess, right?" Cid finally spoke, his gaze distant. He wrenched his eyes from the captive, looking towards the single locked door in the room. "Well whoever or wherever you are..." Muddy eyes shot a look back at the seemingly tiny figure. "...You had better come get this girl out. She won't let you down..." His fists clenched and his stomach turned as he focused on the floor. "So don't you dare disappoint her."

And somewhere far away, he was answered.

§

"We won't." Rina offered as the elevator door slid shut. She flashed the attendant with a friendly smile.

The woman nodded. "Good, we have had one case of a couple who brought their child down here and played with the grate. His fingers were unfortunately damaged."

"Hm, he was stupid to be putting them into the grate anyway." Akio folded his arms across his chest, standing in the farthest corner.

Rina chuckled. "Be kind Akio. Kids will be kids."

The attendant quirked her lips at the complementary couple. "What about you two, do you have any children?"

Akio stiffened in his corner, green eyes narrowing slightly while the faintest hint of pink bit his pale cheeks. Rina answered first, however.

"Two," They both stared at her with a small smile and bright eye. "A boy and a girl."

"Oh," Her husband seemed to be staring at the back of his wife intently and the attendant wondered if it was safe to question further. "What are their names?"

The elevator made a slight lurch as it reached its stop. "Mokuba and Talla."

Their guide opened the grate and stepped down first, turning back as the pair stepped after her. "Oh, those are pretty names."

The woman beamed with all the pride of a mother. "Thank you."

"Mm, this way please," The banker led them toward a different sector, directly across from a finely dressed stranger with a thick head of white hair. Kestrel felt his eyes upon her and turned to look when the attendant's earpiece clicked suddenly, making her startle slightly.

"Please wait a moment." She instructed her charges as she turned into the message being relayed into her ear.

Seto and Kestrel watched from a few feet away, just out of hearing range. However, the swift tawny eyes kept trained on their guide. The faint creasing of her lips, the tension that built up within her shoulder-blades and the sudden spring in her calves. The faint turn of her ankle, the easy pull on her dark hair; all of these served as signs for the physician.

Slowly, as to not arouse interest, Amun leaned up to the white ear of her partner.

"She knows we're not safe Seto." He tensed slightly as the soft of her lips touched the sensitive skin of his ear as she murmured into it. A completely unruly thought crossed his mind; and was banished just as quickly.

Green eyes turned swiftly and gave her a hard look. Still smiling disarmingly; Kestrel nodded slightly. Kaiba looked back up, silently cursing the attendant. He leaned down to whisper back in her ear, all too aware of every strand of her hair that touched his face.

"We have to split up and run."

Now it was her turn to tense. A fierce light shot through the daybreak irises and she whispered heatedly. "I won't leave you."

Refusing to look deeper into those words, he scowled. "One of us has to get to the vault and figure out where Gozobora is. If we split up, at least one of us will make it out to save them."

Kestrel opened her mouth to protest and Kaiba placed a quick hand over her lips, sealing them for a moment. His cool breath trickled down her neck as he leaned closer to finish his statement. The attendant looked like she was almost done.

"Don't you want to save Talla?"

He felt the resistance slip out of her form as if those had been magic words. When Seto released the woman, she held her head in defeat and gave the tiniest nod of approval. With a hard smirk, he whirled back around the scanned the antechamber they were in. There was a series of vaults to the left and an identical series to the right. All white-walled, marble-floored, gilded handles, and state-of-the-art technology.

Amun picked first, ducking her dead and moving stealthily she went down the left hallway. She cast one glance back at him and the sheer force of it made him pause. Within the honey-colored irises was some phantom of the past. A darkening that rimmed the color and spread inward like the plague; as if she was going farther into shadow; away from whatever pinprick of light had kept her moving. At once she was open, raw for the briefest of moments—and the rise of emotion astounded him.

But then she turned, veiling her err with a platinum sheet of hair and noiselessly moving around the bend before he could identify the feeling that look had for him, invoked in him.

The attendant clicked her microphone, reaching for a concealed weapon and turning around for him. Seto moved, sprinting down the hallway in long, graceful strides.

The alarm was five seconds behind him.

§

A/N: All right, I guess I could give you a laundary list of excuses as to why I'm updating so late that could vary from abduction to conversion. Instead, I'm going to offer a chance to help me speed up updates. I need a beta reader, Simple and plain. If anyone is interested just leave a review explaining why you would like to beta. And as always, love you all!


	26. The Parting of Ways

_  
Catch me as I fall  
Say you're here and it's all over now  
Speaking to the atmosphere  
No one's here and I fall into myself  
This truth drives me  
Into madness  
I know I can stop the pain  
If I will it all away  
Don't turn away  
(Don't give in to the pain)  
Don't try to hide  
(Though they're screaming your name)  
Don't close your eyes  
(God knows what lies behind them)  
Don't turn out the light  
(Never sleep never die)  
I'm frightened by what I see  
But somehow I know  
That there's much more to come  
Immobilized by my fear  
And soon to be  
Blinded by tears  
I can stop the pain  
If I will it all away  
Fallen angels at my feet  
Whispered voices at my ear  
Death before my eyes  
Lying next to me I fear  
She beckons me  
Shall I give in  
Upon my end shall I begin  
Forsaking all I've fallen for  
I rise to meet the end  
Servatis a pereculum.  
Servatis a maleficum_

_-'Whisper' _performed by Evanescence

§

It was either luck or divine intervention that as the two conspicuous boys walked into Fukushima, the alarms went off. A red light flashed from the walls, following a blaring, sharp siren sound. Everyone in the building paused, except for a number of uniformed men and women running towards the scene of the disturbance, each with one hand poised on their standard issue guns. Seconds ticked by and the well-dressed clients began to shrink back and murmur to one another in mutinous fear as the attendants gathered their wits. Somewhere close, a girl started crying as she cowered behind the long legs of her father. A petite woman wearing the banker uniform climbed onto her desk; the black heels clicking against the titanium surface.

"Everyone, please remain calm." Her reedy voice retained a smooth monotone as she gazed out at the public. "There has been a slight breach of security, and our teams are dealing with it now. There is no need for panic."

"What do you mean, a _slight breach_?!" The man with his young daughter cowering behind him demanded.

"We have reason to believe that a small party that entered the vault sectored entered on falsified information…" Her voice droned on in its crisp, business-like tone.

"_Yugi_," Yugi started at the sudden sound of the Spirit, calling him back away from the scene before them. "_We should sneak inside while there is a disturbance. They have a better chance of not noticing us and it'll be too hard to get in otherwise."_

Looking at the flat-screen monitors and recalling the unforgiving faces of the security that jogged past, Yugi couldn't help but agree. He pursed his lips. "_But Yami…the security breach? What if we wind up in some kind of struggle between the trespassers and the guards and can't find Kaiba and Kestrel?"_

_"That's just it Yugi, I can sense them…" _Yami echoed back with a grave tone. _"…and Kaiba and Amun, they are, the security breach."_

The realization struck him sharply as the boy inhaled suddenly, his eyes widening for the briefest of moments as he came back to the exterior world.

"…As I have said before," The attendant had an audibly snippy voice as she spoke. "Everyone here is safe. This is a secure…"

"Yug?" Joey looked away from the woman and the crowd, still playing a battle of words.

He blinked once, and set his lips in a frown that lined his brow. "We have to get into those vaults now, Joey."

Wheeler blinked back. "What! Why?"

"It's Kestrel and Kaiba—the security disturbance, I mean." Yugi's violet eyes were filled with worry.

"Oh jeez," Joey ran a hand through his shaggy blond hair. His amber gaze focused on the single, titanium door set slightly ajar from when the security had ran out. Cameras. Lasers. Gunmen. Maze-like halls. The stormy possibilities of what lied beyond that door filled his mind. Then, his face set and he gave a devil-may-cry chuckle without looking down at his shorter companion. "Well then, I guess we really have no choice." Joey turned back to his friend, nodding. "Ready?"

Smiling slightly, he nodded in return. "Ready!"

Then, like a rocket, the blond wheeled around, sprinting to the vault door—the suddenness seemed to catch Yugi off guard as he had surely been thinking of something much more on the stealthy side. _Please, trust me with this one Yug. _He mentally asked. Sure enough, he heard Yugi's delayed footfall echoing a few feet behind him.

"If this place is so secure then why was there a…" A woman's voice from the crowd arguing with the exasperated bank attendant faded away as rapid thuds echoed against the sharp tile. Simultaneously, several heads turned to the sound of the noise. A rag-tag pair of boys, one short and one tall, was sprinting to the bank vault doors.

The female attendant yelled crisply at them from her desk. "Gentlemen please stop! Those doors are unauthorized for anyone without a Fukushima attendant! All trespassers will be—"

The taller, fair-haired one turned to his side, screeching to a halt feet from the door. His pale face was confident and filled with tense energy. "Bullshit!" He bellowed to the attendant.

Yugi stopped abruptly in his wake, stumbling a little at the suddenness. Not sure what to do, he watched his best friend and held his tongue with anxiety bubbling up in his stomach.

Joey had turned back to the crowd, forfeiting the employee. "Don't you people realize what's going on here? We're all crowded together like animals. This is a hostage situation and this woman would make you the sacrifices to keep her job!" His words ran a murmur through the crowd as nearly fifteen pairs of accusing eyes went up to the speechless woman on her desk.

"I—" She stammered, unsure what to do with the hurricane that was the boy.

"Well, I for one am not going to be held hostage by some lunatics to keep this bank going! I'm making sure that when the police come; I'm able to leave unharmed! You all do what you want!"

With those parting words, Joey sprinted the last way through the door. He heard the companion steps of Yugi and kept going. Within ten feet of the doors, he heard several more steps and a number of voices. Wheeler smiled to himself.

_Try to catch us now_

He kept running halfhazardly, trying to loose the sound of the pursuing voices from the bank clients who had all but riotedHe dodged into several corridors, the sound of the alarm filling his ears and the bleary red light casting everything in flashes of relief. Finally, as the pursuing voices faded from white noise, he heard his name.

"Joey!" Yugi was calling from a yard or two back as they passed the next bend.

Wheeler slowed, finally stopping to wait for the shorter boy to catch up with him. After a few seconds, he appeared. Muto was panting heavily, a line of sweat encasing his brow. He collapsed on the ground when he reached his friend, sitting down with his legs strewn out carelessly on the cold tile. Belatedly, Joey remembered both the difference in leg-span between him and the shorter boy; and the natural fitness that he possessed compared to the frail body of the boy next to him. A spike of guilt rippled through him.

Catching his breath, the spiky-haired prodigy spoke. "Joey, I can sense Kaiba and Kestrel. They're that way!" He pointed to the left exit.

Joey nodded and looked back at his friend. He would apologize later. Right now, there were people to save. "All right, you yell directions from the back, got it!"

There was a brief flash of light and the boy suddenly stood only a few inches below him with reddened eyes and a heightened face. "Right." Yami agreed.

Joey was off again, Yami one step behind him.

§

As the blaring siren of the alarm and the sudden flash of red light overloaded her senses, Kestrel stumbled. However, she recovered and withheld from chancing a glance back to see if her partner was alright. She bit her tongue and kept running.

_Damn it Seto…_

The hallway she ran through had a consecutive series of numbers. She recalled which one Seto had used before. 539GLK07J1. It was the serial number of the vault she needed to enter. The numbers she was quickly jogging by began with the number four; but were steadily rising. Kestrel turned her gaze in front of her; watching for the obstacles she knew would eventually catch up with her. She turned back to the side. 45s…46… a sudden splash of blue made her swivel back around to the front.

There were four armed security guards, three males and a female nearly indistinguishable with their matching blue-and-white uniforms and shaded glasses. They were at the end of the hallway, about fifty yards away.

Kestrel balled her hands and kept running. When they were thirty-five yards away she discerned that each of them had pulled their guns, and four barrel vaults were targeted on her. The sound of her feet hitting the tile was drowned out by the rhythmic thumping of her heart and the steady pull of her breath. Her blond hair swung behind her as she ran.

The woman stepped forward when she was within 100 accuracy range of their guns. The pistol still trained on the woman, she called out. "Halt now and do not resist being taken into custody for trespassing or we will shoot."

But Amun was already steps ahead of her. The golden eyes focused on the opening created between them all when the woman had stepped forward—the single blind spot where none of their bullets would hit.

_This is suicide._ A voice sounding suspiciously like Montague entered her head. _It's been years since you've handled a weapon. You've gotten soft and don't know your own limits anymore. You won't make it._

She narrowed her eyes, beginning to feel the strain of her run through the halls. _Maybe I'm not as good as I was once. _She admitted to herself._ But the past never goes away. If nothing else, these past few weeks should have proven that. What I was… what I did… is a part of who I am. I can… I must… do this._

The tiny voice of sanity (or Montague) vanished as she kicked up her speed and bent her head for the final sprint.

The lips of the woman moved, her words steaming by uselessly…

And then the crackling of gunfire.

The movements were too blurred, too chaotic to be seen clearly. There were the bullets, silver and streaming towards their target. There was the woman, rushing to reach the point of safety. The two approached each other like gravity, and it was impossible to tell if they collided or…

The guard gave a yelp as her full force crashed into him, barreling him over. There were the briefest moments when golden eyes met with the guarded shades. She was in the air, her hair a halo framing her face and his mouth aghast.

Then it was gone, and she skidded slightly to the left, recovered using her momentum to lean right and caught her feet again. She ran to the left, vanishing behind double doors.

The four gunmen were left in her wake. One was on the floor, still blinking in shock of the sudden attack.

"C-Captain?" One of them finally shook off enough surprise to break the silence.

His female captain was handling her gun, studying the slightly smoking pistol as though entranced. The glasses had flown off her eyes, and their dark stare continuously traded between the gun and the empty space where the trespasser had escaped. She was shaking.

"What the hell?"

§

As Seto Kaiba reeled around a corner, he heard two shots go off behind him. The titanium wall to his left made a hard thud, and a fist-sized dent developed into it.

"Intruder is escaping down the left wing. Send help immediately…" Her voice crackled on the radio and began to grow lighter behind him. Their steps echoed across the smooth tile.

_I can outrun her; she's not the threat._ Green eyes scanned the walls in on either side of him. He exhaled sharply through closed teeth, narrowing his gaze. _These numbers start at 44 and get smaller. Gozobora's vault won't be here._

The second pair of footsteps was rapidly growing more distant, and the shots had all ceased.

_That leaves Amun with the vault._ He spied the dark spot of cloth and quickly feigned right before ducking down and rolling to a slight-open door to the left. A bullet ricocheted off the wall inches from his head.

"Stop!" The heavy footfall of several security members egged Seto on as he rolled into a crouch and regained his legs.

_I have to make sure that she gets to the vault and out as easily as possible. _

Making a quick decision, the former CEO hovered at the door for a moment; his red locks wavering with the tense motion. He raised his head, catching the encased eyes of the security guards.

_The one charging ahead seems to be the captain… four following him. _

The captain was holding a smoking gun, shouting down the hall as they rapidly approached.

"Halt intruder or we will open fire!"

_A little late for that._ He thought with bitter acrimony. _I have to let them get close enough to make sure they'll follow… but if I let them get too close I'll be caught. _

He gritted his teeth, keeping his body triggered toward the armed guards.

_Damn it Kestrel, you had better find that vault!_

The leader's boot passed a tile and Seto bolted.

"Stop!"

He heard the bullets pass beside him as the security guards followed closely; barely out of range.

Their chase took them down the hallway and straight into another. The walls passed beside him like a sterile blur filled with the sound of shouts and gunfire. His heart began hammering against his ribcage, the even breaths slightly more drawn out. A faint burning began to build up within his long legs.

_Tch, I won't loose here against these glorified bouncers. _

An extra spurt of speed, and he began to hear the distance growing between him and his pursuers. He was drawing away. At this rate…

Amidst the chaos, a sudden explosion of pay wracked his left shoulder.

Kaiba staggered slightly with shock, his eyes growing wide and shifting downward.

His entire left side was encased in a crimson fluid.

"Damn it!" He muttered between clenched teeth, trying to pick his speed back up and run down the hall. However, he started to feel a spreading numbness in his limbs as he ran. Choking back a swear, he took a sharp right to a pair of black double-doors…

…And crashed head-on with a guard who had just exited through those doors.

There was splitting pain, and a sudden darkness. A chorus of shouts and the slick sound of tile. Kaiba blinked. One of his contacts had slipped off.

He was sprawled out on the tile, blood still pouring from his shoulder and the guard he had hit was sitting a few feet away, his glasses still miraculously on.

The booted feet skidded to a stop near them, the captain training his gun on the escapee. "Are you both alright?"

The other guard darted up to his blond partner who was still on the ground. He had a hat on and muttered something the other man's ear. The first security man inhaled sharply, gaze focusing on Kaiba's exposed blue eye.

"We are unharmed sir." The second guard stood up and addressed the captain; who nodded and lowered his gun. "We can take them in from here. There has been an uproaring of the clients and they had run into the vaults. You are needed to gather them up and restore order."

The captain nodded. "Take him to detention for questioning. I will be there shortly."

Kaiba watched, still on the floor, as the captain and his men trotted back down the hall, their dark silhouettes disappearing. He turned his eyes back to the two guards and frowned.

_The second one is shorter than me… I could try to knock them out before they reach for their guns and make a run for it…_

All thought process leading in that direction was quickly silenced however, as the blond stood up, hoisting him up in the process. He bit his cheek to keep from snapping at the renewed explosion of pain in his shoulder.

"What is your name?" He demanded, staring straight down at Kaiba.

Growling, he spat out; "Akio Shinobu."

The guard bent down, peering at him from behind the glasses. "I don't know. You sure?" The question was directed at the second guard.

He nodded, taking off his glasses. "Kaiba, it's us.

Both eyes went wide. "Yugi Muto?" But the angular frame of the face and deep violet eyes were unmistakable. A sudden euphoria made him whirl back to the first guard. "And that means you're Wheeler.

The blond guard removed his glasses, and sure enough, the pouting brown eyes were staring back at him.

"Hey pretty boy, looks like you've marred your looks."

Kaiba scowled. _That settles it. This really is Yugi and the mutt._

"That the hell are you two doing here?"

Joey made an enraged face and shouted in his ear. "We're saving your pretty boy ass, that's what you little ingrate!"

"Kaiba," Yugi cut in before he could retort, staring down the hallway. "Where's Kestrel?"

_He knows about her! That means…_Sensing the futility of lying, the CEO gave him a sharp look. "She should be at Gozobora's vault."

§

The moment Kestrel Amun ripped around the right corridor; she felt the hairs on her neck stand on end. Too late to do anything, she found a firm hand around her mouth and another one encircling her waist and bringing her back against the wall. Instinctively, she kicked back at her captor and attempted to bite at the manicured hands.

"Please calm down, Miss Amun." A cultured, smooth voice rolled into her ears.

_He knows who I am! _Alarm bells went off within her head and Kestrel went limp in the shadow of the wall.

For a moment there was silence, and then suddenly the security she had fled filed through the corridor, passing by her and her captor. Unable to move, she focused on the hand on her mouth. It was pale and long-fingered, with precisely clipped nails and a single gold-banded ring on one finger.

When the sound of feet disappeared down the next set of doors, the hands released her and the medic turned to face the stranger.

A head above her stood the silver-haired man she had spotted earlier wearing a red jacket. Everything about him was rich, refined, and confident.

"Who are you?" Kestrel asked coolly, making sure to note the exits within the corridor.

The man smirked slightly, giving a strange little laugh. "You mean Kaiba boy didn't tell you? Oh, that rotten old brat; not to mention me!"

_Kaiba… is this man working with Gozobora! _Her thoughts buzzed while the man's eclectic talk fell into white noise. He gave a little cough to clear his throat and she snapped back to attention.

"Ah, but let me digress. My name is Maximillion Pegasus. I am an… old friend of Mr. Kaiba's and when I saw you two entering Gozobora's vault, of all places, I knew it just had to be him—even if my eyes deceived me! And that of course, would make you his lovely accomplice, Ms. Kestrel Amun."

_This man… how much does he know? _Her golden eyes sized him up warily; and as if reading her mind, Pegasus responded.

"But of course, I have no idea what this whole conspiracy is about. However, I do love Kaiba boy and as a billionaire, I have far too much time on my hands." The sleeve of silver hair moved as he gesticulated his words; never revealing the right half of his face. "So I have decided to help out in any way I can. My humblest apologies for the abduction; I wasn't really sure how else to stop your impressive rampage."

_I don't know if I can trust this man…_She weighed her options. _But if he already knows about Gozobora's vault…_

She took a deep breath. "I need to locate Gozobora's vault. Its number is 539GLK07J1. Can you help me?"

The strange man laughed again, his eyes bright and she was suddenly reminded of a child coming up with some ingenious prank. "Well of course, my dear. It's right down this way."

He turned and preceded down the corridor, Kestrel a step behind him, a morning gaze trained on him for any signs of deceit.

The silence they walked in became unbearable and the businesswoman cleared her throat. "So how do you know Seto again, Mr. Pegasus?"

"It's Seto, eh?" He cast a smirk behind him before continuing on. "Let's just say that we've had some business arrangements in the past. The first one was very messy and hardly ended well; but the second one had a much lighter note. I was hoping, as we both own gaming companies, that we could somehow reconcile with this and combine our businesses. What do you think, hm?"

She met his brown eyes. _There is no way in hell he's running a business with someone like this. _"Maybe. It does make sense."

Pegasus turned back around, making another turn. "Huh, I'm not sure what someone as polite as you is doing running around with someone as sour as Kaiba-boy."

Amun flashed him a slight smile, half-focusing on the numbers to her left. _We're in the 5s…._

"Oh, he's not all that bad. Just a little introverted."

He laughed again, waving her over to enter through a different pair of doors. "Oh, you do remind me so much of someone, Ms. Amun… very much of her."

Her heart held, and she checked her face. Kestrel hardly noticed that they had stopped.

The silver-haired CEO whirled around, a secret grin on his face…

"Kestrel!"

"Pegasus!"

There was the sudden sound of running feet and three figures approached them. At first, she tensed to see two guards but when she examined their figures…

"Yugi? Joey?" The medic blinked. "What are you two—Akio!" She focused on the sight of the bleeding man who was glaring right past her.

"Pegasus." He growled out the name.

"Hello Kaiba-boy. I was just chatting with the lovely Ms. Amun. It seems you've run into a tad of trouble. I was just offering my assistance." Pegasus waved. "But what a treat! I get to see Yugi here too!"

"What the hell are you doing to her, Pegasus?" Joey snapped, glaring at the man.

"Me?" He dramatized his offense, placing an arm around her shoulder that made her tense and recoil slightly. "Why on earth would I ever hurt this darling creature?"

"Pegasus, I'm warning you—you lay one hand on Kestrel and I'll be the shit out of you!" The blond challenged, his hands into fists

_What… what is going on here?_

"Kestrel." Kaiba was half-hunched on his feet, one hand clamped onto the injured shoulder. Blood had already seeped through his jacket. His voice brought her to swift attention. "Open it."

Following his suit and dropping the names, she took a hesitant step forward. "Kaiba…"

"Just open the damn vault or this all will be for nothing!" Seto snapped one green and one blue eye focused on her.

It wasn't his words that made her stop; but rather his health. _ That wound was probably caused by a bullet. It should be wrapped now. But if he continues to shout like this his blood pressure will go up and he could go into shock, or at the very least pass out. _

A composed façade falling over her, Amun turned away to allow Joey and Pegasus to exchange words. She approached the vault.

"H-A-O-N." The letters ghosted between her lips as she typed them into the pass-code.

There was a faint click, and the silver door swung open. Her golden eyes glanced around every corner, searching its titanium surface for some hope that Gozobora Kaiba was indeed, still very much dead.

Inside, a sliver of white caught her eye. She reached into the vault, aware of his eyes on her and broke the seal with the edge of her nail. Two folded sheets of monogrammed paper fell into her hands. Amun read, and her eyes widened on the words as her slender fingers clenched the paper. Her entire face went blank.

"Kestrel…" Yugi's presence at her side startled her into awareness and she took a shuddering breath, clenching the papers to her before speaking.

"Talla is being held in southern Nara with Gozobora." The devoid quality of her voice cut across the bickering and focused the attention on her.

"Mokuba?"

She drew another long breath.

"Amun, here if you want me to read it—" She shook her head at Yugi's hand; forcing the words out of her system like a toxin,

"Mokuba is in Blois with Leon Tabar."

"Blois?" Joey blinked. "Where is Blois?"

She turned around, a woman cut of stone. "Blois is near Orléans, in France."

"France?" Joey exclaimed. "How the hell are we going to get to France?"

"You're not." Kaiba cut in. "This doesn't concern you."

"Kaiba, we need all the help we can get." Kestrel cut in before he could respond. "Besides, you are in no condition to be demanding anything."

"I'm not leaving my little brother out there!" He snapped, clenching his wound.

"Fine." Her cold voice echoed across the chamber. "We'll go to France. Yugi, Joey—would you go after Talla?"

Yugi placed a familiar arm on her shoulder. "We'll get her back, Amun."

A faint crack beamed through the stony exterior. "Thank you… both."

"And I can help with the plane ticket." Pegasus cut in with a dramatic bow. "Unless you can find another way out of here."

Seto gritted his teeth, feeling himself boxed in. _Out of all the people in the world who could be here…_

"Thank you very much, Mr. Pegasus." She nodded to him.

"Alright, let's get out of here then." Joey threw his glasses back on. "Come on criminals, we're taking you out."

§

"Mai?" Tea Gardner stepped up to her friend's rental apartment, knocking on the door. "Mai are you here—huh?" The door inched open.

She pushed the door open, peaking her head in. "Mai?" The room was dark and quiet. Tea stepped into the room, turning on the light and trying to ignore her plunging stomach.

The rooms were empty except for furniture. Fear gnawing at her insides, she stepped into the kitchen. There was a note waiting for her on the table. Running over, Tea quickly scanned its contents. She groaned.

"Oh no… Mai!"

_Tea,_

_Sorry for ditching you like this girlfriend; but I'm got some business with that dumb blond. If he thinks he's going to skip out the month I'm in town!!!!!...Okay, seriously Tea, I'm worried about them. They've been gone too long and we both know that Joey's a magnet for trouble. I'm going after them. I'll call you when I hear something. Give them hell for me!"_

_-Mai_

§

A/N: TO MY BETA: Sorry about not sending this one to you. It took forever to get it out and I was worried about waiting any longer. You'll defiantly get the next one. To EVERYONE: The best way to spread holiday cheer is to leave reviews every year!


	27. Spinning a Tale

_I never knew_

_I never knew that everything was falling through_

_That everyone I knew was waiting on a cue_

_To turn and run when all I needed was the truth_

_But that's how it's got to be_

_It's coming down to nothing more than apathy_

_I'd rather run the other way then stay and see_

_The smoke and who's still standing when it clears_

_Everyone knows I'm in_

_Over my head_

_Over my head_

_With eight seconds left in overtime _

_ She's on your mind_

_ She's on your mind_

_Let's rearrange_

_I wish you were a stranger I could disengage_

_Just say that we agree and then never change_

_Soften a bit until we all just get along_

_But that's disreguard_

_Find another friend and you discard_

_As you loose an argument in a cable car_

_Hanging above as the canyon comes between_

_Everyone knows I'm in _

_Over my head_

_Over my head_

_With eight seconds left in overtime_

_She's on your mind_

_She's on your mind_

_And suddenly I become part of your past_

_I'm becoming the part that don't last_

_I'm loosing you and its effortless_

_Without a sound we lose sight of the ground_

_In the throw around_

_Never thought you wanted to bring it down_

_I won't let it go down until we torch it ourselves_

_And everyone knows I'm in_

_Over my head_

_Over my head_

_Eight seconds left in overtime_

_She's on your mind_

_She's on your mind._

-_'Cable Car'_ by the Fray

§

Kestrel Amun let out a soft sigh as she finished bandaging the unconscious man's torso. She leaned her golden head back, letting it rest against the wall as she closed her eyes and cleared her thoughts. The memories floated in and out; disjointed from the letter which had brought such an upwelling of things… people from long ago.

Inhale. Exhale. Inhale.

1,2, 3..4..5…6…7….

Exhale.

_Focus on the now._

After sneaking out of Fukushima under the pretense of being captured by policemen a.k.a Joey Wheeler and Yugi Muto; the party had split ways and Pegasus had called his driver to pick them up. Within ten minutes, the man had arrived in his Rolls Royce and picked up the unlikely trio.

They had been driven to the white-haired man's hotel room where the hotel staff was well enough bribed to not notice the man who was obviously in excruciating pain with a woman's jacket shredded and wrapped tightly around half his torso.

Upon entering, Pegasus had gotten to work with sending people down to the Fukushima to collect the "Shinobus'" car, securing passports and visas for the couple, and ordering his pilot to report at the nearest airport and be ready to leave a.s.a.p.

Meanwhile, his two guests bickered. Akio was stubbornly repeating that he could be treated after they had landed in France because she would take too long and then they wouldn't be able to reach Mokuba in time. On the other hand, Rina was protesting that even though she had stopped the loss of blood by using her jacket as a make-shift bandage; the wound needed to be treated immediately because there could be bullet fragments imbedded in the flesh and the area had not yet been cleansed and could easily get infected. Besides, he would be useless to Mokuba if he arrived half-dead and bleeding because he was a stubborn jackass who refused to even lean on her shoulder so he didn't tear open the wrap.

However, with all the complications, they had boarded a private jet within an hour and a half, courtesy of Pegasus Corporations.

Once settling down on the plane, Kaiba's adrenaline had worn off and with his blood considerably thinned by the bullet-wound; he promptly passed out. This led to Amun taking over to remove the blood-soaked shirt, clean the wound, and bandage it with actual gauze and ace-wrap from the jet's medical supply kit. Kaiba was lucky because the bullet had merely skimmed his shoulder—causing a lot of blood and bruises but no serious damage.

And now the doctor was exhausted from her strenuous day, and was forcing herself to stay awake with the knowledge that in a few hours Seto's bandages would have to be changed. Thus, Kestrel found herself organizing her thoughts while leaning against the wall of a private jet on the way to the place she had ran from so very long ago. The note, lined from unfolding and re-folding, weighed down heavily within her jeans pocket.

_I have to get up._The thought floated lazily behind her lashes. _If I stay here much longer I am going to fall asleep._

With a minute sigh, the medic unwound her legs and stood up, giving a small stretch before approaching her _patient_.

For his part, the man had gone from forced unconscious to a restful sleep due to a handful of sleeping drugs from the plane's medical kit Her eyes studied him carefully, the dark wick of lashes contrasted with his ghostly complexion. His tangled hair had formed a burgundy halo around his sharp, angular features.

The blankets covering his bare torso had slipped slightly, revealing a marble shoulder blade and the dark hallow of his neck. His chest rose and set easily; and for one, stolen moment, Seto Kaiba was at peace. Her fingers strayed, hovering above his cheek, inches away from _touching_…

And she gave a tired smile, coiling her fingers together; withdrawing her hand and shaking the notion away to keep her mind from wandering down a thorny road.

_He's still paler then usual, but some of his color has returned. I'll change his bandages in an hour… I should leave so he can get some sleep for now._

_(So I don't do anything uncontrovertibly foolish)_

She stepped back, running a stray hand through her hair and turned out the room. The door shut behind her with a muted click and she let out a deep breath. Kestrel looked up under the veil of hair, picking a hallway without much concern and began walking down it.

_This plane is big, but it can't be that big._ She reassured herself as the walls passed with monosyllable gray sleekness.

_Being in all of these art-challenged places almost makes me want to go back to Gozobora's house just to see the décor. _Amun thought ruefully to herself as she trailed down the floors.

"Huh?" The woman halted, blinking as her eyes focused their attention on a very out-of-place seeming portrait amongst the sterile corridors. It was nicely done in a structural blend of impressionism and early realism. The woman in it was delicate and feminine; her blonde curls dancing above thin shoulders clad in a cerulean dress that pronounced the large, chartreuse eyes lit above her hidden smile.

"Her name was Cecilia." Pegasus's voice startled her and Kestrel spun around.

"Pardon?"

The white-haired millionaire stepped up so he was parallel to his guest and continued to talk, staring at the painting with deep affection. "The woman in the painting… her name was Cecilia."

Her tawny eyes caught the painful longing that sketched in his scrunched nose and single visible eye. She looked back at the image with an understanding smile.

"She's lovely."

Maximillion watched her facial expressions from the corner of his eye. "I think so too."

A moment passed in comfortable silence—an art admirer and the artist himself reaching a fragile comprehension with one another.

"You know, Kaiba-boy and I haven't had the best history; and saying we are friends is a brazen lie." Pegasus broke it without looking away from his masterpiece. "Seto Kaiba is, however, a vastly entertaining man and that is part of the reason I am currently assisting the two of you. I am, shall we say, painting a piece of life."

Kestrel slanted her gaze towards the eccentric businessman. "And the second part?"

His dark eye met her light ones, and she held his gaze steadily. A sad smile had quirked slightly at the man's lips.

"You reminded me of her."

She broke his gaze by blinking, leaning back in slight surprise. Her eyes trailed back to the portrait and she attempted to mentally attach the image of the aristocratic beauty with herself.

Amun raised her eyebrows and let out a polite chuckle. "I fear I fail to see the resemblance."

Pegasus, however, simply shot her a secret grin. "How unfortunate."

Before Kestrel could inquire about his response, the CEO turned about, waving her forward.

"Come. As your host I must show you around."

Stealing one last glance at the portrait she supposedly resembled, she turned back and jogged to catch up to the eccentric, albeit charming, man.

§

Blue eyes revealed themselves in a single swift unveiling of lashes. His vision came back through a haze of chocolate hair; and he managed to prop himself in a half-seated position only to feel a warm, gentle pressure on his good shoulder. The other was wrapped firmly in an off-white bandage that constricted the movement of the entire appendage. He looked up at the hand, following the limb up to a familiar face framed by a halo of golden locks.

"You should lie back down. You'll re-open your wound." Kestrel.

He allowed himself to fall back against the back against the bed, keeping his eyes alert. "How long?" His voice croaked slightly from hours of disuse.

The medic was already at his side, her skillful fingers checking the bandages around his chest. Annoyingly, his body reacted to her touch, sending little electric signals straight to his brain. The man repressed a shiver with a scowl.

"Almost a day. We'll be in Paris in a few hours and then we can get a car to take us the rest of the way to Blois. Pegasus has already arranged for transportation and lodging." She answered, finished her examination and sitting on the edge of his bed, passed him a bottle of water.

The liquid cleared his throat and restored his self-awareness. "You took the dye out of my hair?"

Amun shrugged, staring away from him as she kept busy in the room. Her shoulder shifted with movement and rippled under the dark shirt she wore. "The blood ran into your hair and when I was washing it out, the dye came out too. It doesn't matter much though. We had to be cautious in Japan but Europe won't be on the lookout for you."

The CEO scowled at her purposeful avoidance of meeting his questioning eyes. He forced himself up again; and at the sound of the sheets rustling she turned her attention back to him, still diverting her gaze from meeting his unforgiving, penetrating stare.

"Stubborn man, I told you to lie—"

His hand snatched her wrist, propelling her forward until she caught herself leaning against his bed; tawny eyes lit.

The tension suddenly rose a hundred levels within the airplane room and Kaiba sliced through it with steely determination and an unflinching gaze on the downcast woman.

"What did the letter say, Kestrel?" The forcefulness in his voice would have made her stick up her nose and make a snide comment about 'overcompensating' a few months ago. Now, she retained her face towards the simple tile work on the floor. Disgust and concern battled for dominance in his psyche and he grasped for the first because it would allow him to interrogate his companion with less emotion.

"Seto…" She sounded exhausted, and Kaiba repressed a stab of guilt at the notion that she had been up for him.

His grip on her wrist tightened, refusing to allow any method of escape. "My brother is with this madman. I have a right to know what he wants, Kestrel."

Trapped by the truth of his words and the unrelenting force within his stare, the young woman seated herself on the bed, rolling her shoulders and removing the note from its safekeeping on her person. She unfolded it along the creases; her movements were suspiciously calculated. She handed him the paper while looking away, as though it was too grotesque for her to witness. Eying the doctor up and down, Kaiba judged it safe to release her wrist and receive the paper. Her hand fell limply at her side and he turned his attention to the letter after shooting her a slightly wary, slightly worried look that went by unnoticed.

_My beloved bird,_

_I know you have found this because you are my _tueur_. No matter where you run, and what you call yourself you will always be mine. Yet you are a used doll—and the lure of being needed has made you run. It is false, my lovely. No one actually cares for you but me. You are too filthy to belong in their world. Even now, this child with me is hampered by his connection to you. You are a bleak infliction upon society. A toxin that knows only to harm. Let this event serve as a lesson to you, my darling._

_You have no place but with me. _

_-Until we meet again,_

In place of a signature the note bore a delicate millennium eye. Kaiba read the message twice before glancing back up at the still figure.

"Tueur?" His French was proficient, but the word was foreign to him.

Her head gave a tiny nod. "Tueur—assassin, kunoichi, hit-for-hire."

His blue eyes sharpened but he retained his iron control. "You are an… assassin?"

The demure, disheartened blond in front of him didn't match up with the word. Some detached part of his brain was laughing manically at the idea that this… selfless, foolish, all-too-soft medic could ever…

Amun closed her honey-colored orbs, giving another tiny nod. "In order… In order for you to understand what we're dealing with; you need to know the whole story, I think. Or at least, everything I know—about Blois, about Tabar, about me; and how we all… somehow…come together."

Kestrel re-opened her eyes and looked at him as though she was signing her own death warrant. Her hands were balled into fists in her lap. The depth of her sorrow made him itch to grasp at her wrist again, but he remained unmoved as she took a steep breath and closed the bright irises once again. She stole a number of deep breaths before launching in, eyes closed and facing the wall.

"It all began about twelve years ago…"

§

_He caught her in the hallway. The moonlight shafted in between the row of colonnades and drew designs across the marble flooring. Her shadow darted in and out of sight, slender and wispy as she quietly made her way to the doors. She hadn't spotted him yet, leaning within the shadows of the great double doors. Five feet off and he stepped forward, merging out of the shadows and causing her to halt instantly, the long cloak billowing slightly at her ankles from the sharp movement. _

_Silence echoed as they faced off, her face hidden by the long hood and his half-veiled by the night. The Khepresh on his head gleamed in the light. His bronze arms crossed and the velveteen voice resounded within the hall._

_"This is foolish, Kakra." _

_She pulled the hood off, revealing a tawny face with hair like sand, whipping around it. There was a fire filling her bird-like irises, alighting her entire lithe frame with power and determination. A red cut made its way across his cheek._

_"Then I am a fool. Get out of my way, Pharaoh." Her voice was hard, and warning._

_He uncrossed his arms, taking another step toward the woman. "Please, Kakra. We all miss him but if you go tearing after him—" _

_"I won't leave him to die, Pharaoh." She said the title with a hint of spite and stood her ground, glaring at him with passion and refusal to back down. "You may stay here and lead this war, but I will bring Seth back."_

_Her remark stung and he felt anger welling within him as he snapped back. "Kakra, do not forget who you are addressing. Just because we are friends does not mean that I am above commanding you to stay as your king. Do not test me."_

_She took a step forward, her tall frame suddenly tense as her eyes flashed. She was close enough for him to reach out and touch. Hot breath fanned on his skin against the cool of the night. _

_"Command all you want, Pharaoh. I will go against Egypt and the gods themselves if I must. I will not leave him to die."_

_He had to stop himself from stomping his foot in frustration. She could be completely unreasonable when it came to him._

_"By the gods, what good can come of it, Kakra?" His violet eyes flashed angrily. "Even if you leave and go after Seth, what can you—a woman of noble birth who left the priesthood—accomplish? You will be nothing but a liability!"_

_"Do not demean me, Pharaoh!" She looked about to slap him if violence was in her nature. "I can manipulate the shadows just as well as you can and I have a ka to fight with! I am not worthless." The last part came out in a hiss._

_Seeing that he was loosing ground, he fell back. "Kakra," His tone was softer and the Khepresh felt heavy on his head. "If anything happened to you too… I would have lost both of you."_

_Her eyes softened and the fury melted away. She closed the gap between them and enveloped him within the soft folds of her body; anchoring him within all the troubles that encompassed his mind. He allowed himself to lean against her, for the weight of his country to drag his body downward. Her voice was soothing in his ear._

_"Don't be afraid. You have enough worries right now… I will bring Seth back, and we will return together. I promise." _

_She pulled away, holding him at arms length and giving a bright, burning smile._

_Beaten, he pulled away and side-stepped out of her way giving a rueful shrug. "You had better keep it."_

_Laughing, Kakra blew him a kiss as she pulled the double doors open, stepping out of the courts of Egypt and into a war zone._

_It was the last time she ever laughed._

§

Chapter Preview: _An orphan picked up on a cold night…an underground trade is taught…lust burns a life… a love scorned… the flight to freedom. The story of Kestrel Amun._

**I just lost someone very important to me and reviews would really cheer me up, so thank you very much.**


	28. The Makings of a Tueur

_Sweet little words made for silence  
Not talk  
Young heart for love  
Not heartache  
Dark hair for catching the wind  
Not to veil the sight of a cold world_

_Kiss while your lips are still red  
While he's still silent  
Rest while bosom is still untouched, unveiled  
Hold another hand while the hand's still without a tool  
Drown into eyes while they're still blind  
Love while the night still hides the withering dawn_

_First day of love never comes back  
A passionate hour's never a wasted one  
The violin, the poet's hand,  
Every thawing heart plays your theme with care_

_Kiss while your lips are still red  
While he's still silent  
Rest while bosom is still untouched, unveiled  
Hold another hand while the hand's still without a tool  
Drown into eyes while they're still blind  
Love while the night still hides the withering dawn_

_-"While Your Lips Are Still Red", _by Nightwish

* * *

"I was born into a wealthy aristocratic family in Amboise, France. My father owned a vineyard estate and my mother was an artist…"

_"Ma biche, hurry or I shall leave you behind."_

_The girl attempted to speed up while sliding into her overcoat, stumbling down the steps and into the car awaiting them. She managed to hop in; and their driver shut the door behind me. _

_"Maman, where are we off to?"_

_She smiled, her face glowering with life. The woman was young, her golden locks allowed to flow in free curls and brilliant, smoldering cerulean eyes set in a classical face. Her soft curves were accented by the crimson dress that exposed a good deal of her bust as she lounged within the vehicle. _

"_There is a wonderful party to celebrate the opening of a new art museum. It will be all too much fun! And you can see all of those wonderful new paintings with me!" She was practically jumping within her dress._

_Against the beauty, her daughter seemed frail. Wispy platinum hair tugged around her white face and too-large eyes the color of honey blinked from within the tiny frame._

_It didn't take us long to get to the museum; and soon the child was lost amongst coattails, swarming amongst laces and bows and carefully tailored slacks. There was the clinking of glasses and loud talk of conversations and laughter._

_"Ah! Aurore!" A walrus-mustached man made a beeline for the pair. "So glad you could make it!" He kissed Aurore's hand and then smiled at her silent shadow. "You even brought the little one. How are you, little Madam?"_

_Aurore patted the fair hair absently and beamed. "Ah, ma biche. I brought her to see the paintings as she loves art."_

_"Just like her maman." The man winked at the woman and then whispered something in her ear that made her eyes glaze over with hunger. She nodded enthusiastically, and the man slipped a small handful of white pills into her gloved hand. Without a second thought, the woman tossed them back in a spray of blond curls and then gave her hand back to the waiting man; whose hungry look resembled hers as the eyes roamed over her body. Aurore had a strangely ecstatic look on her face as she waved back to her daughter, following the guiding arm of her companion._

_"Ma biche, be good and leave all of these old fools alone. The art wing is already open and Monsieur André has given you freedom of the museum. Tell me if you seen anything worth remembering!"…_

"My maman, Aurore, was one of the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. Most girls find their mother's beautiful, however…" She chuckled softly. "Everyone else thought that she that too."…

_The girl wove to avoid the drunken steps of the adults and made her way into the art wings alone. She strolled casually, independently, comfortably through the entire museum. Her large, bright eyes focused on each painting, appraising it without movement; only the slightest smile or the tiniest wrinkle of her brow. By the time she had finished the entire museum; there was a vibrant sunset outside of the window and her maman returned without Monsieur André; smelling decidedly of liquor and sweat, and giggling like a school girl. The Monsieur slipped her another white pill and Aurore greedily took it, returning the favor with a kiss. They left right after that._

_"So, ma biche, what did you see with your artist's eyes?" Her maman asked lazily, playing with a stray curl._

_Her daughter blinked, a tiny wrinkle forming about her straight nose. "The sunset was prettier than the paintings."_

_Aurore laughed again, her blue eyes shining wetly and her cheeks flowing rosy. "What a little critic you are." _

_She pulled the girl forward into her dress, and within her embrace she smelled her—expensive perfume, musk, and strong wine. The girl sat limp as she allowed her mother to hug her. When Aurore pulled away again, she laughed again. _

_Maman laughed at nothing, and at everything._

_As the car trekked up to the estate, they passed the garage where a large black vehicle was already parked. It meant that pére was home. Her daughter glanced over at her maman for her reaction; but she was still doubled-over, laughing; and wouldn't be bothered to notice._

_The driver pulled up and he had to help his employer out of the car because she still hadn't stopped giggling and the lack of oxygen seemed to have made it hard for her to walk. She managed to step out of the car, calling for her child as they walked towards the manor. The little blonde ran forward, and became her maman's crutch as she laid a slender hand on the porcelain shoulder, leaning over to half-fall on the shorter figure as they stumbled in._

_They were only halfway down the hall when he caught them._

_"Aurore!" Pére was furious; it was in his quick walk and cold eyes. "What in God's name have you been doing?"_

_Maman giggled a little, then stood fully and patted her daughter's head. She winked at her and gave the smallest nudge on her back. "Run along, ma biche, I must speak with this grumpy old man._

_Pére looked insulted and the girl looked hesitant to leave; but the imposing frame of the man with cold eyes and a strong chin seemed to frighten her and she was an obedient child. Still, her slow retreat down the hall allowed her to catch his raised voice echoed down the hall; and the sound of flesh striking flesh._

_She walked down the long, elegant hall with large windows that spread out the receding sunlight and entered my room. Upon entering her chambers, the child picked up a comfort toy, a little stuffed bird with ornate detail in the red-flecked wings and golden beak, and sat down next to her miniature easel. She opened up a set of paints and tried to make the sunset as best a six-year old could. After awhile, there was a firm, rhythmic knock at the door. Already aware of her surprise guest, she set the toy down and opened the door for her pére. He entered in long strides, taking the room in as one who has rarely seen it does. Finally, his gaze kept to rest on his daughter as she sat on the bed, waiting for him to talk._

_"Did your maman meet with anyone today?"_

_"Maman took me to the art museum. We only saw other visitors and art, pére."_

_From years of practice, the girl understood what she was and was not to tell her pére._

_His gray eyes bored into her and she fidgeted as though she wanted the toy badly, or to curl up in a ball so his glare couldn't scald as much. However, he extracted what he had wanted because the intense look drifted to the left; toward the easel with a poorly constructed sunset on canvas. _

_"Did your maman buy you that, Celestine?"…_

Kaiba's voice cut through her memories like a bitter wind and she blinked at his inquiry, prompting him to repeat himself without curtness.

"Celestine?"

Kestrel nodded, her eyes still numb and glazed. "My birth name. Celestine Oiseau."

He nodded in understanding and she continued; quickly falling back under the spell of her own past.

"I was too young to understand comprehend what my maman did when we went on these museum visits; but I had learned early on never to mention them to my pére, and if need be; lie…"

_She glanced over at the treasured art set, wary. "Yes, maman said that I would one day be able to paint great art if I practiced on it."_

_He stared at the girl again, and for a moment seemed to analyze her every movement. The air was suckered out of the room; and a sudden blast of heat seemed to clog all of her pores._

_"Monsieur Oiseau," The man that entered was dressed in the servant's black suit that matched his amber skin tone. Dark, receding hair could not quite cover his rather large ears. "Monsieur Amelle is in the sitting room and wishes to be announced."_

_The tension lasted until Celestine thought she might suffocate from it. And then, the stormy eyes broke and turned to the manservant with a curt nod. _

_"Thank you Montague. I will go to him immediately." _

Montague?" Seto cut in again; the familiar name resounding in his mind. Kestrel nodded, her eyes opening for a moment and an absinthian smile worked onto her face. "Ah, that man… Aurore was too wild to be maternal and Charles was too busy for a baby; so Montague… he raised me. He was kind of like my nurse, my governess, and my guardian all in one."

Kaiba was suddenly stuck with an irrational gratitude to the cantankerous Hispanic and at the same time, an equally unexplainable jealousy. Kestrel, however, had fallen back under the spell of her own narrative and took no notice to the man beside her.

"Montague, of course, remained behind to make sure I was alright…"

_His large hands patted her down despite her blatant disapproval. _

_"I'm fine, Montague. Really. Pére has never hurt me. He is just…"_

_"—far too curt with his own flesh and blood." The man grumbled, satisfied that the girl was indeed alright and straightening back up. "Back home, there is nothing as important to one as your family. Here, it means less than __**mierda**_

_Celestine cocked her head, and for one moment, she was the woman she would one day become—her smooth, softly angled jaw revealing itself under the tufts of hair. "But aren't you my family, Montague?"_

_It was a child's question—innocent and wide-eyed and completely mind-blowing._

_The manservant opened his mouth to reply, and shut it again. A slow smile formed on his face and he patted his charge's shoulder; bending down to look her in the eye. " I suppose I am, Madame Celestine."_

_The girl smiled; truly and happily; and it broke like a dawn on the waters across her face. She tugged on his white sleeve and stood on her tip-toes to embrace his larger body. "See, it means something."_

_A defeated, sad smirk was on Montague's features. It was the look of a man who understands that he now loves something, someone more than himself; and knows it will cause the greatest of pains. Still, it isl be completely irreversible. It was the look of resignation._

_"So it seems, Madame Celestine. I guess that I must now protect you as family."_

_The child laughed—the sound of lilies blooming and bird learning to fly, and a spring forming in the forest. "You already do that though!"_

_Her tiny hands released him; and yet from then on an invisible leash attached him to her heart. "Then I will continue by your side as long as I may, Madame Celestine."_

"I tell you these things so you will understand the situation I was born into," Amun continued, re-opening her eyes but still refusing to face him. Her muscles were still, tense under the thin sheen of lightly pigmented skin. The smile on her face shifted from whimsical to nostalgic to bitter and back again as the normally observant irises filled with a regretful, milky distance. She was three feet and a lifetime away from him.

"Now, you must not hate them. Aurore was growing steadily more unstable and Charles could not stand the shame; and I think it was time and brokenness itself that led up to the actions that had me flying away from home a week before my twelfth birthday…."

_She awoke, suddenly, and lay still under the sheets for a moment. Her heart thumped hard within her chest and she waited in the dark to hear the noise that had tugged her from slumber. The delay wasn't long. Within the relative quiet of night, an abrupt bang erupted from the hallway somewhere outside her room. A white hand tightened on the sheets when she discerned the harsh bellow of her pére._

_"…damn whore! Who did you fuck this time?" Each word was accentuated with the jarring sound of bone against panel._

_Celestine flinched and then subconsciously leaned toward the crack in her door as her maman giggled wetly. _

_"What's wrong, Monsieur Oiseau?" She tittered, her voice going from audible and fading back out. "…rather handsome… why not play a…"_

_Whatever she had said had upset her husband, however, because the next sound the child heard was the sound of flesh on flesh and bone on bone. _

_She was at the door before it registered that her feet had hit the floor. She was the rabbit, sticking its head out of the whole to tend to the fox. _

_"SHUT YOUR FILTHY MOUTH YOU FUCKING JUNKIE!" Charles roared, his sandy complexion gone red with fury. Spittle flew out of his gaping mouth with the words escaped. One of his powerful hands had Aurore pinned against a wall. The other was curled into a fist, repeatedly slamming into her small figure and drawing out a crunching sound. Through the assault, the blond laughed hysterically, her blue eyes almost white with brightness. The heart-shaped lips were stained with blood as evenly distributed as any lipstick._

_For a few precious moments, Celestine stood—transfixed in her silken nightgown with dilated, honey-colored eyes. A light of unknown origin had caught her father's wedding band and it danced—becoming a beacon as the fist descended again and again in a macabre motion. And each time it rose, it brought to life a burgundy ribbon in the air; until all there was only pinpricks of light and spirals of red that twined within her eyes and sank into her senses until she drowned in it. _

_"Celestine!" Montague had walked into the hallway, his face paling as he spotted the girl. "Madam Celestine, go back into your room!" _

_However, Montague's words seemed too far away, above the sea of light-and-red; and it rippled above her conscience. _

_Aurore stopped laughing. _

_The sudden silence from the woman as she was pummeled acting as a chain to yank her daughter into sudden movement._

_Montague shouted something. _

_Small feet padded on the carpet and suddenly her eyes were around her pére's thigh. "Pére, STOP! Stop please!" She was half-crying and her words slurred together as delicate hands clenched the cool fabric of his pants. Her cheek absorbed the warmth of his body as it buried itself in the curve of his hip. There was complete, perpetual silence._

_Charles obeyed the command, blinking in shock and turning his head sharply to the body that had come out of nowhere to wrap itself around him; his gray eyes failing to register his daughter. In the lull, Celestine snuck a glance at her mother and felt her stomach turn. Where Aurore's aristocratic beauty had once been was a blood-soaked rag, reaching down to stain the black dress she had been wearing. _

_Then, the clock chimed._

_She had been so focused on her mother that his words failed to connect until his fist had shot her across the room and spinning out of the sea back into self-awareness. Shock served to numb the pain of the blow as the girl looked on._

"_CELESTINE!" Montague's voice roared as he made to run toward his charge. As soon as his steps aligned within his employer's frame, however, he was swatted several feet back with the air knocked out of him. Charles's gray eyes were alight with madness. The spittle collected on his lip as large feet thrashed about. _

"_DON'T TOUCH THE GIRL—She comes from the whore of the devil! Look at her eyes—IS SHE EVEN MINE?" As if to retrieve the answer, he turned back on his wife, holding her shoulders against the wall and bashing the small frame into the already beaten panel._

"_IS SHE?"_

_However, when he pulled back to strike the woman again; she crumbled. The black fabric of the dress became wings to fold around the delicate body and a golden halo encased her face. Tan skin became sand and swirled across the room, fleeing with the spirit so it might not hit the ground. But the ground rose up to meet it._

_A sickening squishing sound erupted from her fall; and her daughter's amber eyes widened to the brink of consumption. _

_The clock was chiming its hour, and Charles was panting, and blood trickled from the walls; yet it was noiseless._

"_Ma…man," The words secreted across her lips and suddenly the girl was on her feet, swaying. "Ma…man?" The whisper caused gray eyes to turn on her; but she was impervious. "Ma…man," It rose it volume like a broken crescendo; and she was running; "MAMAN! MAMAN! MAMAN!"_

_As soon as she was within reach, Charles battered her off her feet and she hit the nearby wall. There was a crack and she fixated on the blood which had somehow flown from her maman to her. _

_Pére was talking, and yet it was nothing but static. Something in her had frozen, while the other couldn't sit still._

"_NO!" Montague had dove between his charge and her father. The Frenchman had a good foot on him; but the Spaniard was an experienced brawler. With his momentum, he knocked into Charles's chest and from the sound, broke a number of ribs. Charles tore into his face with a fist; and then it was a blur of crashes and shouts. _

_Celestine was numbly aware of the fight between her adoptive father and her perhaps-biological one. She found her feet once again, and stumbled toward her maman against the heaviness of her own feet and the blurriness of her vision. An age passed as she made her way across the hallway to her mother—the beauty, that smiling creature. _

_She knelt beside her; trembling and trying to get passed the petrifying fear that refused to let her hand move. Swallowing it down, she moved to touch her mother. _

"_Ma—" It died. _

_Against her pale hands, a drenching of red encased her fingertips. The contrast was striking; and even as she watched, the stain blossomed and ran further down to infect the colorless digits. In some sickly exterior sense, she wondered if her maman would find the sight beautiful._

_And then she ran. _

"He killed her?" Kestrel had been getting farther away from him, and Seto felt a sharp stab in his chest that made him want to draw her back; back to when her skin was darker and her hair was golden, and she wasn't helpless. She blinked, slowly, light slowly bubbling in her eyes as she was dragged away from her memories by the sound of his voice.

"Pardon?"

The misplaced etiquette made him swallow a bitter laugh. Kaiba resisted the urge to shake her.

"Your father, he killed your mother?"

A slow nod, and her eyes slipped closed. "Ah…"

"_Cele—" Montague's shout was cut short by a kick in the gut, and she kept running. Head down, wispy hair covering her face; the child darted out of the hallway and through the door. She didn't slow as her feet made water jump on the cobble-stone walkways and squelched against grass in groomed yards. She sprinted through streets, causing a cabbie or a driver to screech on his breaks and curse at the pale phantom. Her lungs burned like fire, unable to melt the ice that encased her mind. Her legs were mush, and yet they carried her away; out; farther. Tall, spindle monuments; cozy, colored shops, and great gothic rose-windows passed in the space. Faceless people wandered across her peripheral vision within being seen. The rain darted across her face, flung there by her momentum._

_She had to keep running. Keep moving. She had to get rid of the blood on her fingers. In her mind. Maman. Pére. Cabbie._

_The last stray thought registered too late and only as the automobile rammed her side and stopped the very much necessary momentum. _

_At first there was pain-splitting from her side and she blinked from the street; wondering briefly how she got there. There were shouts around her, and the cab driver stepped out of the car, running towards her. _

"_Madam, Madam, are you alright? Can you move?" He hung in her vision, a dark hat and she wasn't sure how to answer his question because no, nothing was alright and nothing could ever be alright. Yet, yes, she could sit up and…_

_Her eyes trailed to the street below her, and the dancing red ribbons that the rain wasn't able to completely erase quickly enough. The red ribbons, drowning… blood._

_The girl moved so quickly she caught the concerned driver off-guard and he fell back; shocked eyes watching the injured child sprinting off into the rainy night._

_Blood. Maman._

_Run._

_It was an irrational fear, a pointless drive; but she had to leave—remove herself from the blood and the memories before they swallowed her up just like the red stain spread on her hand._

_Celestine no longer felt her body. The rain had frozen it and the too much blood was gone to circulate right anymore. _

_The night stretched on, timeless; and her vision began to blot. Her head felt dizzy, but she couldn't stop. If she stopped it would catch up and…_

_She was on the ground; blinking against the rain and panicking because she had stopped moving._

_The girl struggled to brace herself with her arms, but they were useless and gave out under her. Her face struck the ground with the fall. She flinched, and then attempted to arch her body with her legs, kicking off the ground; and found them as useless as her arms._

_She stopped moving, eyes hollowing as the rain relentlessly pattered on her prone form. Celestine focused on the gray sky so she wouldn't have to see the blood pooling around her. She prayed for the sky to swallow her up. And quickly, she felt exhausted. It was deeper than physical—her body had already given up—it was this emotional exhaustion as if her heart wanted nothing more than to sleep. Sleep and forget._

_She blinked against the water, idly feeling it caress her cheeks. _

_The thrum of the rain filled with a strange contention, promising that it was alright if she went to sleep. If she just closed her eyes…_

_NO! Her will hardened and she blinked against the lull, embracing the pain to keep herself awake, alive. She couldn't stop here; couldn't stop. She had to KEEP MOVING!_

_She bit her lip as she turned her body over, a gasp escaping her lips as the wound in her side cut open again. She panted, her breath making tiny clouds under the rain; hair plastered across her forehead. Slowly, painfully she inched forward. Her fingers scraped against the ground, scrambling for leverage until she managed to hull her torso forward and kick her legs a few inches. _

_She coughed—blood and water quickly ran down the side of the road. The rain was drowning her—it infiltrated her nostrils, pelted into her mouth. _

_Move. The girl didn't remember why this was important—was she running from something or towards someone? Which way was she to go?—but the singular, all-consuming thought that she must not stop remained; pushing her beyond limits._

_Her ears barely registered a splashing sound against the rhythm; but Celestine didn't realize the man until he had stooped beside her._

_At first he merely analyzed with his cool gray eyes, impassively watching her struggle while his thin frame shielded her from the rain. _

_Her vision was blurring, and the delicately-structured, lean face danced in and out of her vision as she continued to inch forward._

_She had to... had to…_

"_It's pointless, you know." His voice was acrid velveteen and the warm breath tickled her skin and caused a shiver to run up her spine. "Wherever you were heading… you can never reach it with that body of yours."_

_Clouded, brown eyes widened. Cannot reach it? But she must, she had to._

_Her abdomen slicked across the wet stone, leaving little rivulets of red as she pulled, ignoring the spreading numbness and the stranger above her and the in-out of her vision. Just move forward._

"_So… you won't stop, even when you know you can't win; huh?" Tips of his dark hair fell onto her nape. "Where is the profit in that?_

_Just keep… moving forward. Her legs kicked, sliding from the water._

"_Your dying and yet you…" His voice raised octaves and a flash lit in his eyes as he leaned out a hand to finger the hair away from her forehead. Fingers trailing up to cradle her face and force the girl to look at his face. She gave feeble protests—this man was halting her. _

"…_are a creature that will not be broken?"_

_And then, suddenly, she was being lifted from the ground and vaguely aware of the warmth from his trench coat enveloping her chilled body._

_Blackness seeped into her vision and only an after-call; half-imagined reached her ears before Celestine went under._

"_I will be the one to tame you." _

"That man… took me to an underground hospital so no one would find out about a runaway. He also introduced me into an underground lifestyle."

The implication his Kaiba full on and knocked the breath from his body, though his only reaction was the drawn out, "… He was—"

She nodded, fisting the thin fabric of his bed sheets, her shoulders drawn together and blond veil hiding her facial features from him. "That was the first day I met Leon Tabar."

Any response from him was prevented from the sudden entrance of Pegasus wearing a ridiculous smile and mischievous eyes.

"Oh, my now." He grinned at Kaiba's patent fuck-off glare as he observed the scene. Kestrel curled up at the end of his bed, one leg dangling loosely and tense body; while he was half-sitting up, hair mussed by sleep. "I had just come to inform you that we will begin descent and should arrive in approximately thirty minutes… However, it seems that I have, ahem, interrupted something…"

He let the implication hang in the air until his business rival snarled. "Get your bastard mind straight, Pegasus and leave us the hell alone."

Pegasus ignored him in favor of flouncing back and waving at the pair with a not-too-subtle wink and a blown kiss. "Don't worry, I shall allow you two to have your 'alone time'; just be done within half an—"

"PEGASUS!" Kaiba snapped, making to get out of bed until a gentle hand forced him to sit. He stared, surprised. Kestrel hadn't made a move since Pegasus had entered and he had assumed that she was still dragging herself out of the past.

She stood up, giving the white-haired man a gentle smile and a wave. "Thank you very much for taking us here, Mr. Pegasus. We will be ready to depart the plan as you have instructed."

Maximillion blinked in slight surprise at her glowing presence, and simply nodded before turning back out.

Kaiba's blue eyes locked on her. As Pegasus's footsteps retreated, the eager façade slipped slightly until she merely looked politely interested. However, to his familiar eyes—the shadows that danced in her eyes showed the painful introspective and the slight knot in her back expressed weariness.

"We will continue this conversation after we have landed." She didn't turn to him, leaving him staring at her forty-five degree profile.

She walked toward the door.

Damn, she looked tired.

"Stay." The word was out before he could recall it and Kestrel halted, still refusing to face him; and for once, Kaiba was glad at the discretion.

"You're asleep on your feet." Seto explained in a brusque tone. "I'm going to go take a shower, so you might as take a nap here so I can make sure you don't oversleep and delay us."

Amun turned to him, a secretive smile tugging at her lips. "I'd rather not sleep right now."

Yet, she still complied and took a seat on the edge of his bed again when he got up to the bathroom.

At the entrance, Kaiba stole a glance back and his lips curled into a frown at the figure—her eyes trailing across nothing while she leaned against a bedpost and wrestled her exhaustion—her demons.

"Hm," He muttered under his breath, stepping into the shower. _Stupid girl._

True to her word, when he stepped out of the shower fully-clothed; Kestrel remained leaning against his bedpost, performing menial gestures and exercises to keep herself conscious even as her eyes blinked repeatedly.

"Hm, isn't lack of sleep bad for your health, doctor?" The brunette made his presence known to her as he walked back into the room.

She gave him a sincere, if half-hearted smile and put her hands down from some intricate finger dance. "Careful, Mr. Kaiba. You are in the dangerous range of showing the capacity for human emotions—namely concern."

Seto scowled at her for the taunt, but swallowed back a small bubble of relief that it seemed she was able to function, at the very least. His gaze traveled back to her eyes and he had to hold back a curse.

There, residing in the amber orbs, was that perpetual inkiness—like a sick stain of nostalgia. His mind stumbled to find the words his heart conveyed_. Stop! Wake up! You're here now—you're safe!_ Before the cold tongue could find the phrase, however, his blasted enemy of white hair and ostentatious gestures walked in with a short bow and a suggestive wink.

"Glad to see you to have, ahem, finished up. We're landing as I speak; so if you would follow me to the dock…"

Kaiba glared.

_Damn prince of melodramatics. _

The drive was quiet—or more so, filled with Pegasus's menial chatter from the front seat that

Kaiba sat in the back, his arms crossed and a deep scowl etched on his face as he blatantly ignored everything his rival CEO said; while sneaking glances at the woman in the back with him.

Except for the occasional polite nod and forced smile, Kestrel may as well have been made of stone. Her posture in the comfortable back-seat was rigid, and her eyes focused only on the window—of familiar streets and buildings of her memories. Blonde hair twisted its way over her shoulders, and with the particular angle he was at; Seto could only make-out the curve of her chin, the tip of the nose, and the hue of an eye under dark lashes. But it was enough for him to read her; because as expressionless as her features were her eyes make up for ten-fold. The look he found there made him loathe Blois.

_Thank God it's not raining._

Fortunately, the drive to their hotel in Blois was not terribly long and once there; Pegasus cashed a large check for them and handed them the keys to a nondescript, if luxurious, car before departing with promises to "Check in on Kaiba-boy and his lovely Madam" whenever possible. Kaiba merely sneered in response and followed the porter to his reserved room. He shut the door behind him, taking a moment in the dark room to process everything he had heard.

_Aurore, Charles, Montague, Tabar…_

_Abuse, fear, running…_

He felt her presence and turned to the doorway, where a slender silhouette was framed in the dim. He watched as she paused by the light switch, her hand hovering a moment before dropping back to her side. He didn't move as she seated herself on the floor beside his perch on the bed, her head inches away from his dangling legs. He waited in the dark, listening to the carefully controlled rhythm of her breathing. His eyes strayed until she spoke, her voice commanding his complete attention.

"Tabar was the one who took me to Blois. He patched me up and brought me into the world of _tueur_…"

* * *

Next Chapter: _A white rose cast among the thorns... the subterrain world of the lovely murderess, and their master. _

Reviews will act as bribes to my Erato. She's currently quarreling with Melopmene over the fates of the Kaiba brothers.


	29. The Breakings of a Tueur

_

* * *

_

Clouds will rage in  
Storms will race in  
But you will be safe in my arms  
Rains will pour down  
Waves will crash all around  
But you will be safe in my arms

Story books  
Are full of fairy-tales  
Of kings and queens  
And the bluest skies  
My heart is torn just in knowing  
You'll someday see  
The truth for lies

Clouds will rage in  
Storms will race in  
But you will be safe in my arms  
Rains will pour down  
Waves will crash all around  
But you will be safe in my arms

Castles they might crumble  
Dreams may not come true  
Cause you are never all alone  
Cause I will always  
Always love you

Hey I  
Hey I  
Will love

Clouds will rage in  
Storms will race in  
But you will be safe in my arms  
Rains will pour down  
Waves will crash all around  
But you will be safe in my arms

In my arms

_-'In my Arms' by Plumb_

_--_

_The first thing she thought of, upon opening her eyes into the underground citadel, was of the ancient Egyptian Necropolis she had once seen photographs of. The entire complex dwarfed the town above it in both size and grandiosity. The halls were carefully carved the lined with beige tile. Clean, hardwood floors paved over top of rock. Striking, stark lighting hung from the ceilings at evenly patterned intervals. Her tiny footsteps echoed across the hallway as she followed the man on the tour._

_He was a tall, barrow-chested man with a scruffy white beard and tufts of hair around his ears was leading her around, narrating in obviously bored-and-irritated tones._

_"If you follow that corridor to the left you will come to the Aerobatics Room. It is hundred foot gym used to hone in on flexibility, endurance, and basic maneuvering. Many of the tuer also use it to relieve stress…" His name was Lee, from what she could tell, he was the head doctor. _

_When she had woken up, the thin, handsome man whom she vaguely remembered picking her up was sitting beside her bed with a welcoming smile that didn't quite reach his gray eyes. He explained that he had found her on the street and had taken her to his home; where she could stay and live for the sake of true family and promises of love. Dr. Lee had walked in and informed him that she was recovering, and would be 'ready' within the weak. Celestine hadn't asked what she was supposed to be ready for. All she knew was that this place was new; this place was safe. Or, at the very least, it wasn't filled with blood and memories. Tabar had to leave after that, but he had asked the older man to give his 'new playmate' a tour of her home. Lee had bowed and given his consent, only shooting the girl a dirty look when the younger man had left and telling her to get up and change; tossing a soft white dress to the girl. And now…_

_"Hey, hey; are you listening brat?" The sound of his raised voice brought Celestine back to the present and she blinked at the proximity of his old, angry face. "Tch, stupid girl. Why the hell he decided you were worth anything…far too old…" Dr. Lee went on muttering about her while they walked; interspersing his complaints with narrations of the complex._

_"fragile little… Down to the right there is a fork. The left-hand hall will take you to the bathhouse. You will share it with all of the other girls. To the right-hand side is the Weight-Training Room. You will be given instruction in the beginning, and then move on to an independent schedule…kid who won't be able to…" And so they progressed._

_The following days were spent in sessions with Dr. Lee who conducted every kind of test she had ever seen and more; and visits from her mysterious rescuer. _

_Leon Tabar proved to be charming without overbearing, inquisitive without offending, and talkative without controlling. He always brought with him a small meal for the two of them to split of various delicacies. _

_Celestine discovered that this was the only time she was to be fed, and very quickly Leon's visits became the highlight of her days. _

_Leon spoke of many things, but mainly of nothing. He spoke of her future amongst the elite, of how spacious her new home was, of the family he had constructed that she would soon be part of. After a few days, the girl had even worked up the courage to ask menial questions that he answered with vague responses: Why underground? Because there is more room here. Where are the others? They are around, but busy. What kind of lights worked down here? Special helium-burning bulbs. _

_But for all their talk, they never spoke of the past over raspberry crumpets and white tea—of what was and was still, and where she should be._

_And little by little, Celestine began to forget._

"But you just told me all about your parents. How did you forget?" Kaiba's voice broke into the bleak atmosphere and for a sharp moment, only his seemingly loud breathing perforated the room.

"Memory is a fickle thing, Seto." Kestrel murmured in response; giving her mind a quick tap. "This is the most difficult muscle in your entire body to understand."

Scowling at the vague answer, Kaiba held his tongue as her voice dropped its mood again.

"Without any notion of night or day, time passed infinitely. There was simply time with Leon, and time without Leon. Until one day, Dr. Lee proclaimed that I was fit enough to begin training…"

_Dr. Lee seemed to be in an especially foul mood that day. The man was naturally bitter, it seemed. He frowned a lot, causing perpetual wrinkles to mar his cheeks and brow. He glared at anything that moved, and muttered half-hearted curses on a daily basis. But today…_

_Celestine blinked as the older man roughly yanked the tubing from her arm, causing the puncture to start bleeding. He had insisted on conducting some final tests, even after Tabar had cleared the girl and was arranging her schedule for the following morning. All throughout the exam, he had nearly been steaming with ill-contained temper. Twice he had a fit on the poor patient. Once, when she didn't respond correctly to the reflex test( because she was too mechanical and it seemed as though her movements were from memory, not emotion; he had said) and again when he tripped over a cord and broke a urine sample. (Because she obviously had some deadly disease she didn't want him to know about and so had plotted to prevent him from analyzing the sample) Dr. Lee was currently muttering profanities under his breath and mussing through his shelves; back turned to the girl and her bleeding arm. He spun back around, and hen his keen eyes spotted it he swore aloud and thrust a bandage at it;, holding it there to stop the red liquid's flow all the while glaring openly at the child and burning her ears out._

_"Stupid brat, why the hell didn't you say you were bleeding? You wanna die, that's it? You like death?"_

_She head already learned that arguing with Lee was pointless, as the man went decidedly deaf to any counter-points. Instead, she kept her hand steady as he pressed on the limb. A sudden thought occurred, and when the doctor turned around; she grabbed at his white coat._

_He turned his head in surprise, and then annoyance. "What do you want, brat?"_

_Celestine fiddled with the coarse fabric under her fingers. "Dr .Lee… I'll still be able to start training right? With Leon?"_

_Dark eyes bored into hers, suddenly serious. Neither spoke and the moment stretched on, coiling taut. Finally, his crisp, critical voice laced around the tense snake._

_"Do you really want to be with him that badly?"_

_The suddenness of the question caught her off-guard, but the answer was already set in her mind. "…Yes."_

_Lee yanked his coat from her grip and the atmosphere snapped away with the gesture. He turned his face away, hiding whatever emotion had just checkered across it. Heavy steps thudded in the room as he walked toward the door._

_Two steps away, he gave a small backward tilt of the head, and for once there was sorrow amongst the perpetual angst of his aged features._

_"Then you would have been better off dead."_

Kestrel halted, and Seto glanced over again. Even in the semi-darkness he could make out the lines in her shoulders and hear the faint panting in her voice. He swallowed down an irritating lump in his throat that was inclined to tell the girl to shut up and forget about it all. He would see this through to the end. Silence passed for a second, and with a shuddering inhale, Kestrel dug into her soul again.

_Her feet padded against the hardwood as she looked through her schedule for the week. Amber-brown eyes scanned the page as she mentally read through her day. It seemed as though each task was given in two hour increments._

_Aerobics_

_Physics_

_Track_

_Anatomy_

_Dance_

_Physiology_

_Weight-training_

_Going through her memory, Celestine tried to recall exactly where Dr. Lee had said everything was. Unfortunately, the hallways were nondescript and empty as usual; and she was quickly becoming lost. She walked several paces, trying to dredge up his voice and remember her turns, how many steps to which corridor… However, when she finally admitted that it was hopeless and came close to simply picking a door; footsteps announced a presence behind her. She turned, her white hair swaying from the movement._

_The woman before her was her senior by a handful of years. Where maman had been lovely, this creature was exotic. Striking black hair was tied in an intricate weave and fastened securely on the top of her head. Where the hairline stopped, there was an immediate transition from black to gold; as the woman's bronze skin glowered under the light and tugged at her tall, voluptuous form. Seductive, hooded eyes were framed by kohl; hiding above full lips. The woman allowed the child to take in her form for a second, seeming to comprehend her own strangeness. And then she spoke, her voice ice-on-rocks and waves-beating-the-shore._

_"You are the Master's new girl, correct?"_

_Her senses fully perforated, it took the fair-haired girl a moment to understand and nod._

_Immediately after receiving conformation, the dark-skinned beauty turned her back on Celestine, hips swaying with her strong gait._

_"Then come along. It's time for your aerobics training."_

"Her name," The slight disturbance in Kestrel's voice gave away her aware state and Kaiba sat up, aware that this comment, as well as her ironic gaze, was focused on him. "was Chanda. She was assigned to be my personal teacher and trainer until I had proven that I was capable of such tasks."

"Proven?" The brunette queered, eyes narrowing at the word.

A humorless smile marred her face and she shut her eyes before turning away from him, craning her neck against the bed. "Ah…proven."

And sensing that she had left him again, Seto went silent.

_Aerobics was like nothing she had ever done before. _

_When she had been younger, she vaguely recalled a tumbling class she had taken. She had play-dates with boys too, and had always been able to keep up with the most wild of guests when called upon. However, that was leisure. This was life. _

_She hit the mat, harder this time; and blinked in slight shock at finding her sight introverted. The girl pulled her body up slowly, trying to drown out the screams of cramped muscles._

_Chanda watched her while performing poises and maneuvers with inhuman grace and flexibility. Her dark eyes scorned the girl, lighting brightly._

_"If you cannot even manage this simple Ashantaga, I shall simply inform Master that you are too old, too frail, and too pampered to be of any use." Fall, she was saying. Fail._

_But Celestine couldn't stop. Some unknowing force gripped her at the scorn in the woman's voice and she gritted her teeth, splaying her arms out again and hoisting her body up into the air for another try. The lactic acid in her muscles seemed to have kicked in as they were no longer screaming for rest. Wobbly and shaking, she held her poise for a good second before keeling over again. From her spot on the floor, she glared up at the woman with the cold determination of someone with nothing to lose._

_By the end of the two hour session, she could lift into the Ashantaga for a full five minutes._

_After the strenuous physical exertion behind aerobics, Celestine was privately thankful for the relative relaxation of physics. That was, until she actually entered the empty room with a single table and a single book and a little whiteboard set up for her. Chanda wrote on the board in swift, sensuous lettering and launched into the chapter, half-way into the book, without an introduction. Half an hour into trying to find the slope of oncoming projectiles versus those of thrown projectiles; her head was splitting and she decided that for all of her classical education, she was not apt at physics. Chanda gave no leeway, moving the lesson smoothly from objective to objective. The silence between them was broken only by a scratching pen or the screech of marker on board. Halfway through the lesson, Chanda turned and fixated the obviously lost girl with a stare._

_"You understand that you are the oldest recruit here? All the other girls are already up to this level or more. If you are too old and set in your ways to learn the correct forms, I shall inform the Master that you are a lost cause."_

_Meeting the woman's dark gaze, the girl passed a worn, pencil-worked paper to her with thin lips. "Check it, please."_

_It wasn't perfect, as Chanda's fat red marks dictated. But she was learning, and that was all that mattered._

_Celestine would learn so she could help Master Tabar._

_Track actually may not have been grueling had she been allowed just five minutes of walking to warm up her leg muscles that had stilled during the physics lesson. As her teacher seemed to have some malicious intentions for the girl, Celestine wasn't surprised to be launched into a jog upon reaching the large, spacious flat used for various exercises._

_However, it had become a challenge now. To fail meant to fall. To stop. To end. And she had to keep moving forward. _

_Her legs cramped at first, the lactic acid screaming in her ears. But the girl bit her cheek and forced her body to keep even strides. She knew that if she allowed herself to slow even a fraction, she would collapse. Her eyes caught the woman's waiting ones. She was so sure that this fragile little thing was going to break any second. Turning away from her gaze, the blond surged forward. She didn't know when this defiance had been born; she only knew that she didn't want to give the satisfaction of victory to this woman…_

_A bang of the bathroom door alerted her to Dr. Lee's presence. Pale irises turned and met the dark ones of the man. They simply stared for a full minute, sizing each other up and reading in between the lines. And then she felt it come again, and Celestine broke the exchange by turning to vomit in the toilet she was crouched by. Her small frame shook with the effort, and it left a metallic taste in her mouth. She heard steps clacking against the tile and then a hand hoisting her into a half-standing position and tilting her head up. She was brought to look up at the old man's face, the long frown lines and deep wrinkles, as he critically examined her features. A large, calloused thumb came to rub across her lip and when he presented it for her, it was coated in red. _

_Red. Blood. Maman._

_The sight made her legs give out and Celestine clattered to the floor, narrowly missing cracking her skull open on the edge of the toilet by the doctor's swift motion to catch her head. He swore, his image going in and out of focus in her hazy focus. _

"_You pushed your body too hard. It's dehydrated and trying to wash itself out. However, as you haven't eaten or drank anything since yesterday; the only thing left is stomach acid, which has torn your throat raw until you bled." He assessed quickly, leaning the small figure against the wall while opening a bottle and allowing her to drink from it. She gulped weakly yet greedily until he pulled it away. She spared him a questioning look._

"_Too much at once and you'll simply throw it back up. Fuck, you're a stupid kid." He sighed, washing the blood off his hands in the sink. "No wonder Master Tabar asked me to check up on you after today. Why the hell did you push yourself so hard? Did you miss me or something?"_

_Celestine coughed, grimacing as she wiped the blood off her mouth. She gave her white fist a shake; and the liquid spattered off her digits, with it the desperately suppressed memories._

"_S-She…" Her throat was still raw and wet and it hurt to talk. "…wanted me to loose. I saw it in her eyes. She wanted m-me to cry."_

_Lee blinked, arching one bushy brow. "She?"_

"_C—h" Celestine coughed again, this time pulling up more blood. "Chanda."_

_He handed her the water bottle again, and she took it, feeling the cooling sensation down her throat. She drank until he held out his hand for the bottle again, complying with the silent order. _

_Lee refilled the bottle and handed it back to the girl. "Of course she does. She's a jealous little minx."_

_Celestine removed the plastic from her lips, breathing deeply. "Jealous?"_

_He snatched the container from her before she could suck any more from its contents, securing the cap and ignoring her desperate look. "Ah, all of the teuer are. They all feel the same way about the Master as you do. Tabar's been lavishing all this special attention on you too. It's bound to make her envious."_

_She tilted her head, blinking. "Special attention?"_

"_Yup," Dr. Lee groaned as he straightened his back. "Like all of those visits with food. And haven't you noticed that all the rooms you used were empty? He arranged for you to have private lessons and even a private chamber like this. Most of the girls share a bedroom."_

_Celestine found her legs in working order again, even if they were stiff as cardboard. She stood up, still leaning against the wall until her head cleared. "He did all of that for me?"_

_Her world stopped spinning and she stepped out of the bathroom following Dr. Lee. _

"_Mm..hm. Even picking you up seemed a little strange. Most of the other girls here were selected at a much younger age and came from lifestyles were there bodies and minds had been hardened. I don't know where you came from; but you sure as hell came from a nice family. Even being roughed around and beaten like that, you were clean and wide-eyed, and fair. You came from somewhere softer."_

_The memories darted through her vision and she shook her head, stashing them back into the corner of her thoughts. Her gaze averted to the floor and her voice became a murmur. "I came from Leon Tabar. He found me and so I was. That is all."_

_Dr. Lee shot her a look from over his shoulder, a bitter smile on his pale lips. "Then again…" He was walking out of her room, obviously done with the meeting and examination. "…perhaps you are the smartest idea he ever had. A girl running from her past who wouldn't break." His comment didn't seem to be directed at her but Celestine still caught it, her brow furrowing in confusion._

"_Dr. Lee…"_

"_Whatever." The old man waved it away and opened the door out to the hall. "It doesn't matter. There isn't anything I can do at this point." _

_The metal door clanked as it shut and for a second, Celestine stood in confusion at his parting words. However, she shook them off and actually took a moment to look at the room Tabar had given her. Her, the exception. The thought made her smile._

_The room was white with hardwood flooring like the rest of the complex. A single, double-sized bed was laid in one corner. Across from it was a plain mahogany dresser. There was a student-sized desk and chair set in the left-hand side, and the right had the wooden door that led to the small bathroom with a toilet, sink, and shower. A pair of halogen lamps hung from her walls to give light. The entire room might have been 9x13; and plain. But it was a gift, a special gift from the man who rescued her. She cherished it. _

"_Glad to see you like it." A familiar, velvet voice called from the doorframe. _

_Celestine whirled around. She hadn't heard the door open, but she immediately knew her guest. Hastily, she curtsied, an odd move in her flexible cotton beater and stretchy, knee-length shorts. Lee had given them to her before she went with Chanda. She smiled at him shyly. "It is an honor, thank you."_

_Tabar laughed, a high, hissing sound that never seemed to mimic the dark intentions in his gray eyes. "There is no need for you to be so demure with me, Celestine." He sat the tray of food down on the dresser, and sat on the edge of the bed, gesturing for her. Obediently, the girl walked within reach. _

_A long-fingered hand reached up and cupped her face, causing her pupils to dilate in surprise at the cold touch. There was something dominative in his eyes as he watched her reaction. The Tabar leaned forward so his mouth was aligned with her ear. He felt her small body tense in surprise and gave another hissing chuckle. His cool breath wavered against her neck as he spoke. "After all, you are __**my**__ bird. My unbreakable, lovely, bird."_

_Leon pulled back, and Celestine hesitantly opened her eyes, unsure of whether she was relieved or remorseful. Her heart thumped hard in her chest and she drew a steadying breath. _

_Resuming his thin smile, the dark-haired man whipped out the tray of food and patted the seat beside him. "Now come. You must be famished. Why don't you tell me about your day."_

_She agreed, already deciding to leave Chanda's malice out of her narrative. She was his. She would win for the sake of this man. For Leon._

_Psychology_

_Cultural Studies_

_Biology_

_Language _

_Practice_

_As Celestine looked over her new day's schedule, she blinked. In the gray box for 'Practice', the time stretched over three blocks. In essence, it was a six-hour period. The vagueness got to her too. Practice of what? In fact, why was she learning all of this and training? What did Leon want of her?_

_Her thoughts buzzed quietly until the ominous shadow of her teacher fell across the mood and she had to resist scowling. Smoothly, she turned and gave the woman a respectful nod._

_"Chanda."_

_She had called her Ms. the other day and the woman all but knocked her over. Old people were given titles by brats, apparently. Young and lovely Chanda was much too good for that kind of thing. _

_The dark-skinned madam gave her an irate look and turned her head, leading the way to what she presumed to be, the Psychology room. _

_That was another curiosity about this place. Everything had a room. And yet, no one else occupied them. In all seven of her prior classes and even recovering with Dr. Lee, Celestine had always been alone. Tabar seemed to be the only other life… But Lee had said she was an exception, that there were other girls…_

_Celestine glanced up at the sway of dark hair that seemed almost to rear up and state: I DO NOT WANT TO TALK. _

_However, the girl needed answers; and the walls didn't seem like they were going to provide them anytime soon._

_"Chanda?"_

_She caught the shoulder-blades tense through her revealing top; but as the woman hadn't bitten her head off yet, she considered it safe to continue. _

_"What is 'practice'?"_

_They entered a foreign room, which Celestine observed to hold a large poster of the human brain and the same simple desk-and-chair set-up. Chanda shut the door behind her, and as she did; a black smirk blossomed across her features. She chuckled from deep within her throat, and it made the girl's heart jump. Dark eyes curved wickedly, and she was at once a large, beautiful crow. _

_"Practice, little princess," she cooed. "Is where all these things you learn come together for the ultimate goal."_

_Her laugh made her blood run cold and she resisted the desire to run to Tabar, throw herself in his arms, and forget this terrible feeling of forbearance_

_But as suddenly as it had come, Chanda removed her amusement and began snapping out instructions for her reluctant pupil to follow. _

_Celestine had never been so thankful to Sigmund Freud before._

_She hit the ground again, managing to roll herself away from the impending missile and avoid a painful death. Her blood pumped through her ears, pale eyes nearly swallowing the black pinpricks inside. Her body was covered in dirt, and she had attained a nice array of scraps. Nothing serious though. Not yet._

_Chanda's harsh laughter echoed across the chamber and her footfall resounded loudly as she approached. Celestine felt her body tense. _

_"Come on, little one, get up and fight me." Her footsteps came, closer each time; but the girl couldn't move from her sprawl on the rocky terrain._

_"If you don't…" The steps stopped, and suddenly a pair of black, bright eyes was staring over her. "…I'll kill you."_

_A flash of silver caught her vision and the paralysis that held her vanished. Celestine threw herself left across the floor, barely avoiding the short, throwing knife that her teacher currently wielded. She managed to get her feet under her, her fingers playing with a pouch on her waist. Inside, a set of the same throwing knives had been provided to her. Yet, even as her fingers ran across them, her mind had no knowledge of what to do with them._

_Chanda prowled, her hands quickly snapping back from the miss. Everything about her—the lithe way of her movements, the cheshire smile, the abrupt turn of her head, the fixation in her eyes—was predatory. Celestine had been thrown into the lion's den. _

_Practice._

_The dark-skinned woman came at her again, launching into the air; and the fair child darted left, the sound of the knife whistling through her ear as it cut the air beside her. Chanda landed with feline grace and the girl kept pelting the opposite way. But the hunter surpassed with big, loping strides._

_Celestine let out a yelp as the nightmarish vision appeared in front of her. She did a quick back-pedal, her foot catching on an obtrusive rock. She slipped._

_Clear gold met pools of black, and her teacher grinned wickedly. _

_She was falling, into those eyes. Falling, falling, falling…_

_A sharp pain in her left shoulder made her gasp and wake from the sudden stupor. Time slowed as she moved her eyes across her collarbone, sloping down to the left shoulder blade. Impossibly, her eyes widened. Caught there, between white flesh and beige cloth, a beautiful silver knife had been wedged in. And there, outpouring from its origin, like a well, came a fountain of red. Blood._

_Blood. Maman. France. _

_Run!_

_The memories shot through, cutting deeper than the blade and activating every nerve in her body until she trembled with awareness. She was back in France, and she had to run. She had to get away from that memory; from the blood._

_Celestine hit the ground and was up in another breath, darting towards the entranceway into the natural hollow. However, her teacher seemed to have something different in mind._

_Chanda was in her way then, blocking the exit. Celestine's feet came to a sudden halt, kicking up dirt._

_She had to run, had to keep going._

_That was all Celestine thought as her fingers dove into the pouch and grasped something sharp and cold. She began running again, her legs gaining momentum quickly in the short space between them. She kept moving forward until her vision was filled only with ambrosia skin and that cheshire grin. But they couldn't stop her. She __**had**__ to keep moving, __**must**__ escape._

_The knife flickered in her hand, and then the world crashed. It swirled into surprised in dark eyes and sudden burst of white pain, and red. Red. Red._

_Celestine slammed the door behind her, running through the empty hallways in an indiscrete direction. She passed through pastel lighting and white walls and hardwood floors and unmarked doors, circling, darting, turning; until it was all nothing. She kept running until her breath came out short and her vision blurred. And then she ran some more. _

_Her conscience came back and she realized that she had stopped moving. Her legs kicked out instinctively and caught on air. _

_"Stop struggling." The weathered face came into view and she realized that Dr. Lee was carrying her, his strong arms supporting her small weight. Her heart beat against her ribs like a wild animal and she suddenly felt dizzy again. Her head lolled against his arm; and Celestine was about to let the black swallow her up again when she was promptly dropped onto the white-sheets of the hospital bed._

_The shock woke her up, and she half-sat across the bed, her eyes wide and body trembling. Memories filtered between realities and threatened to devour her. Lee moved in calculated precision, his hands grasping syringes and bottles as the white lab coat swirled around. _

_Her vision swam. Red. Her head ached as it attempted to forget itself once again._

_She brought a hand up to cover one eye, tugging at the roots of her hair with her fingers. Her body curled up on itself. With her one eye, she saw that the doctor had moved to her bedside, and was spraying something onto a cloth. _

_"L-Lee…" Her voice shook with her body. "W-What happened?"_

_He touched the cloth to her skin and Celestine shivered under the cold. _

_Keeping his eyes on cleaning up her shoulder, he answered. "During practice you managed to stab Chanda in the chest. She'll live but it'll car. After that, you sprinted down the hallway. I found you half-awake and running. You lost a lot of blood because of the wound on your shoulder. She managed to hit it twice."_

_Wound. Blood._

_She shook her head, trying to swing her legs out of the bed. _

_"Hey, sit back down!" Lee barked, snaking one hand out to catch her and roughly push her back down into the mattress. "You're injured now stay still until I—"_

_The girl was lost to him. She moaned, kicking against his restraining arm. "No—I have to… keep moving forward…running… Maman…" Her eyes rolled back into her head and the old man frowned, lines deepening in his brow. Without releasing her, he reached for a syringe on the nearby end table. Catching a flailing arm, he jabbed the needle into the limb and pushed the plunger down, forcing the morphine into her blood._

_"Sorry kid." He muttered tiredly as her movements slowed._

_Celestine fell limp._

_When she woke up, impossibly later, it was to the feel of someone combing through her hair, pulling all the knots out with quick precision. She blinked, and swallowed when the silver eyes met her own with a smile._

_"L-Leon…" She struggled to sit up, but a cold hand pushed her back down. The man stared at her for a full minute, reading into something deeper and secret; her heart jumped and swayed and for a moment, she was afraid._

_And then he knelt down and kissed her forehead in a cool, brittle touch. Silver eyes glowered at her from the dim of the infirmary. "You'll make a fine tueur, my wild-one."_

"And so time passed like that." The editing was purposefully done and obvious, but Seto didn't call her out on it. Not when she seemed on the verge of breaking. "I recovered soon after that, and Chanda continued to teach me. Her malice had intensified, but each practice was restrained. I learned later that it was forbidden to scar another tueur. It was hard to tell time underground, but after a while I was introduced to other tueur, and began practicing with different people. The youngest was five and the oldest was thirty-seven. They were all female, all beautiful, and all completely in idolization with Tabar. These lessons, I had realized, were to teach us to be deadly. Our physical traits gave us a mask… I was alright with the training and fighting…I adapted, just like the others. However, it never really hit me…what we were to do. Until…" Her voice trailed off for the longest time and Kaiba had almost opened his mouth when she continued steadily. "…I think years must have passed… at least one, maybe two…long enough for me to grow a foot and for my hair and eyes to darken. And then that day came… it might be considered initiation, and I knew I was fairly old for it…" Inhale. Exhale. Seto could almost see her counting backwards in her head. "…Tabar came to me one night with a folder and a special request…" The image passed through her mind and held her tongue for the briefest of moments. "…to put all that time training to use."

"You mean…" Seto goaded her onward, too far in to stop now even as the night wore on in the hotel room.

Kestrel nodded. "It was the first time I would be sent out to kill."

_The woman in the photo was of African descent, her hair cut strictly and full lips pulled over her teeth in a permanent scowl. Blazing brown eyes stared out under a sharp brow. There was nothing evil about her. Nothing bizarre._

_"Her name is Jordan Grant." Leon told her with a painfully analyzing stare. "She is age 29, single, weighs just over 70 kilos, and is 1.65 meters in height. She currently resides in London, Britain. Her week's schedule is attached."_

_Celestine stared at the vanilla envelope that contained the life of one woman, her stats; her schedule. All typed-up notes of her favorite foods, preferred restaurants, and small biographies of those in her inner circle…_

_"Why?" She finally found her voice, raw and scratchy as she looked up to the man for guidance. "What did she do?"_

_Leon gave her a critical examination, and then released it with a dark smile. "You won't ever have this information again, you understand. Even that folder is a commodity. After this performance, you will be given a name, photo, deadline, and an occasional address… however, as you are special to me, I'll tell you this once." _

_She gave a nod, unsure of what she was consenting to but knowing it had to be done and gazed at Leon as one would a guide. _

_"She is the political enemy of the man who hired us. He wants her gone by tomorrow so this is an overnight job. She isn't quite up-the-ranks yet and lives alone, so she's an easy target."_

_A political enemy. She was going to kill someone because a man paid her to. There was nothing that woman did wrong._

_Her thoughts were interrupted by a hand on her shoulder, and she was suddenly trapped in two long arms, pressed against his thin body. Golden eyes went wide._

_"L-Leon?"_

_"Ssh, my dear, my bird, my unbreakable." He hissed in her ear, his breath making her shudder against him. Out of the corner of his eye, he observed her reactions and smirked. "This woman is like the others. You know the fickle nature of humanity; you've experienced it, by poor child." She shut her eyes, memories flickering under the surface. "But you rose above it. These people are below you, my bird. There is nothing shameful in what you are doing. You. Are. Her. Better. Because you are MINE." His teeth bit into the soft skin of her neck and she let out an audible gasp. _

_Tabar lowered his voice, touching the mark gently with his lips. "I trust you to do this for me. I know you won't disappoint." Gray eyes grew dark and he released her, heart thumping. Her hands instinctively flew to the bite mark. _

_"For you?" She queered, forgetting everything when under his burning gaze. _

_Leon smirked. "For me."_

_She followed Leon down the now-familiar passageways into the underground garage. They took a car to the landing dock, where a small, private jet awaited her; already stocked and with a grim-faced pilot and an over-sized tote back with all her necessities. Even though she already had her outfit on, there was an extra outfit inside, just in case. Wrapped in clothes were also her weapons of choice, a cleaning kit to prevent police intervention, a wireless set to contact the local base, and a wallet containing 100 euro. She was taking an hour long flight to London to a landing dock owned by the underground. There she would be provided with a suitable car. She had 24 hours to complete her mission and return to the dock, where she would be taken back here. _

_She was dressed in jeans and a red sweater, a black jacket draped across her legs. The clothing was different from her standard colorless shift and leggings, and it felt strange on her now. She worried the hem of the sweater, silent as she was given her final lectures by their driver, Dr. Lee._

_When he was done, she looked up at both men; and gave a surprisingly tender, naive smile. "I will not disappoint either of you. Thank you for taking care of me."_

_Lee averted his eyes, but Leon held her gaze and smirked, his eyes holding a hidden promise. "I'll be here when you return, my bird."_

_Celestine nodded, and turned, walking up the platform to the aircraft._

_As the door shut behind her, the older man mouthed something to her with tired eyes. _

_His form disappeared and the rumble of the jet started, the captain commanding her to buckle up into the co-pilot seat. As she strapped herself in, Celestine wondered why Lee had told her goodbye._

_The temperature back at headquarters was a constantly-regulated 16°__1__. Slightly cold in their cotton shifts and legging, but after a while, one stopped noticing it. And the halogen lighting was artificial and pale, but once adjusted, you could see fine in it._

_Which was why when Celestine stepped out of the jet, she took an entire minute to compose her senses. The chilly air blasted her face, and the white twilight smacked hard into her eyes. She counted to five backward, blinking each time until her eyes adjusted; and then tugged the black coat onto herself, pulling the tote bag over one shoulder. The person who greeted her was a blue-eyed woman of Asian influence, her dark hair pulled back in a simple clip. It didn't seem to surprise her that the guest froze stiff a moment after stepping outside, and she waited for the younger woman to resume movement before giving a polite nod of greeting and leading the girl through the clean, if small, terminal. _

_"Our number is 665 on the wireless if you have need of us. Please contact us 30 minutes before your return so we may prepare the jet for your return. The time is six-thirty-nine p.m. This way to your vehicle."_

_Silently following the other woman, Celestine was handed the keys to a red Honda Civic. Plain, nondescript, common—invisible. _

_Giving a nod and a polite thank you, Celestine took the keys and drove the car off the lot and passed a wired fence. She had learned to drive a car, plane, boat, and boat; but had little practice with real highways and such. However, the notions came back to her and Celestine maneuvered herself onto the roads of London. _

_She drove a little ways until she saw a tourist stand, paying for a map of London to a kindly older man who gave her a warning that it was supposed to snow tonight and the name of an affordable hotel to stay the night. She thanked him, and once back inside her car, used the map to look up the street address she had._

_It was fifteen minutes away. _

_Looking up at the dusky sky, pale with its impending storm, and began to drive through the streets._

_Jordan returned home from grocery shopping at exactly 8:02p.m. Celestine decided, after parking down the street and casually strolling about the neighborhood while analyzing the environment, that the most efficient way to cleanly kill would be to wait until late—when the night had fully fallen and preferably before the snow had begun. This would ensure that the maximum amount of people were inside their houses, and the time when the least percentage would be gazing out their windows. She would enter the moderate-sized house through the second story window, which like all of the other houses in the community, were locked by only a simple hatch-and-click; easy to pry open. By peering through the windows and critically viewing the structures of the single-family homes; Celestine had a good idea of what the mapping system was. The room she was entering would be an extra room—office, storage, or guest room. Beside that were the master bedroom and a small half-bathroom. Down the stairs and to the left was a compact kitchen and dining area which led to the living room, and against the back was the washing room. Enter through a window. Leave through the back door. _

_However, as she had at least two hours to kill and certain in her judgment that her target was not attempting to go out later that night; Celestine used her time to explore the world which she had almost forgotten._

_She had been in London before, in another life. For some reason, she had seen art galleries—Dali Universe, the National Gallery, the Queen's Gallery. Now, however, she purposefully and somewhat subconsciously, passed by them. Instead she watched the people—a nicely dressed man in a suit was having a conversation on his way to his car and by the way his hands moved, she knew he was lying to whomever he was speaking to. Her intuition, and the disheveled fold of his button-up shirt, said it was his wife. A scruffy-haired boy was having a conversation with his mother, and from his wide eyes and charming smile; he was covering from her the fact that his pockets were weighed down with something, most likely food or light-weight toys by the depth. A pair of young sisters was fighting, pulling on carefully-made braids and frumpy dresses. Down by a corner, a make-up clad prostitute seduced a young boy; wide-eyed and blushing, down an ally. _

_They are below you, Leon had said._

_They certainly weren't contradicting him._

_When Big Ben rang that it was quarter 'till ten, Celestine walked back to her car, strangely numb, and drove back to the neighborhood, parking in a different spot. She used her mirrors to double-check that the target was still in her house._

_She was, in fact, in the kitchen eating a pasta dish. _

_So Celestine waited, feeling oddly detached to the whole ordeal as the tenth hour struck and the eleventh came…_

_At 11:15, Jordan Grant went into the master bedroom._

_Celestine re-adjusted her mirrors to see inside the bedroom window and continued to wait._

_At 11:45, Jordan Grant put her book down and turned off the light._

_At 11:55, Celestine calculated that Jordan Grant should have been asleep for five minutes. __2_

_At 11:57, a teenage girl left her coat behind, exited her car, and walked over to the house of Jordan Grant_

_At 11:59, that same girl walked to the shadow of the house, used the well cap to jump unto the edge of the first-story landing, and flipped onto the ledge of the second-story window. _

_At 12:03, Jordan Grant had her window picked up expertly with a knife. _

_And at 12:05a.m on November 17__th__, the up-and-coming political figure, Jordan Shea Grant, bled to death. Cause of which was from a laceration received across the neck. Killer unknown._

_Celestine didn't become aware of herself until she exited through the back door. The knife had been slipped back into her boots and the area had been cleaned of her presence. _

_Something wet touched her face, and she moved her hand to it. _

_It was snowing outside. _

_Yet, as she removed her hand from her cheek, a small trickle of blood ran down her fingers. She didn't move as gravity pulled it from her fingertips, tugging it down until it hit the earth. And there, a small blossom of red spread throughout the newly fallen snow. _

_Celestine ran._

_She dialed the number for the docking station and drove away, not stopping except to hand back the keys, grab her bag, and enter the plane._

_She remained silent until they landed an hour later, running off the platform and through the garage until she was once again in the familiar halls._

_The girl padded quietly down to her room, entering and shutting the door behind her. She was suddenly exhausted, wanted nothing more than to crawl into the darkness and sleep. _

_The tote bag dropped to the floor and the weariness forced her to her knees. She trembled, her thoughts jumbled and numb and already working to forget that red stain on white snow. _

_And suddenly there were arms around her, cold and bony; and a hissing voice filled her ear. "Well done, my bird."_

_Celestine turned her head in his embrace, vacantly staring into the face of Leon Tabar. _

_"Leon…" She pleaded. She didn't know what she wanted, but it was something. Anything. _

_And he smirked at her plea, tilting her head back with his long-fingered hands and sliding his tongue across her neck. He bit her pulse point, feeling her body start up again under him like a drug._

_He guided the limp girl to the bed in the corner of the room, already working on the red sweater. She didn't move as his mouth trailed downward._

_"I'll give you your reward now."_

_Hours later, Celestine awoke form the numbness older and aware. The blood on the snow and the blood on the sheets both meant the same thing. She turned, hiding her face in the crook of his arm as his legs wrapped around her possessively. _

_She had nothing else left but this man._

_"Was that a good reward, my bird?"_

_"Ah…Master."_

Seto knew something was wrong as her sentences began to get vague and scattered. Her voice got lower and lower until it was merely a whisper.

Kaiba didn't think she had realized that she had stopped. Her entire body was shaking though, and her legs had curled up under her. She was trying to be so small that the room simply swallowed her up and it all went away.

Seto wasn't sure what he was doing, but he knew he had to do something. If he didn't she was going to shatter, or whither, or…

He moved off the bed and stood in front of her, trying to catch her eye.

The amber irises were downcast however, staring at her fist as she clenched it until the knuckles turned white.

"Kestrel." His voice sounded loud and out-of-place in the dark room; but the woman gave no inclination of having heard it.

A strange panic gripped his insides and Kaiba narrowed his blue eyes, scowling. He bent down, reaching an arm out to do something—shake her, hit her—anything to pull her out of the past and back into this room, now, with him.

His fingers grasped her wrist, which was currently shielding her face from him.

As though his touch burned her, Amun suddenly jolted to like. She let out a faint cry and scrambled away, knocking into the end-table in the process. The movement let him glimpse at her face—it was pale, golden eyes wild as her breathing became shaky and her body trembled violently.

Her momentum caused the lamp on top of the end table to wobble precariously, and alarm bells went off in the brunette's head.

"Kestrel!" She called her name in frustration, diving down and yanking her away from her corner. His hands gripped her sides and gave a firm pull just before the lamp fell, the porcelain base shattering against the hardwood floor.

Kaiba turned back to the girl who was curled against his chest, anger welling in his chest. "You stupid wo—"

Her slim frame shook in his loose grasp, but she had turned up, inches away from his face. She stared at him with unconcealed confusion.

"Why?" Her voice was steady despite the tremors of her form. She was so desperate.

"Why what?" the CEO snapped. He hated being unsure of himself and; this heat in his belly and the anger in his chest and that strange need to do something was unexplainable.

"Why would you do that for me even after you know I…" The murmur withered on her lips and she looked back down, shaking her head.

Roughly, the man his hand below her chin and forced her head up. He wasn't good at being careful with people. He didn't know say pretty words of comfort. That was the gift of people like Yugi. Yet, he was all she had and for some reason; he wanted to be the only person to piece her back together.

Blue eyes met hers, anchoring her onto him. "Don't ever look down before me. You—you antagonistic, stubborn, reckless woman who told me that I'm an ignorant prick and saved my brother. You're a pain in the ass and an idiot for caring so damn much about everyone except yourself—so don't ever look down. I don't care about what happened back then, it's gone now. The past doesn't matter."

He really wasn't sure what he was saying and he was pretty sure that you didn't insult someone when trying to comfort them; but he knew he had done something right when her limp arms wrapped around his middle and a low chuckle reverberated in her throat.

She was laughing, an exhausted, defeated sort of laugh as she rested her head against his chest and clenched the fabric of his shirt. "Alright Seto…alright."

Kestrel lay against him and closed her eyes. Her shaking stopped. Her body slid slightly down his, and Seto was forced to hold her to keep her from slipping to the floor.

For a little while, they simply sat together, he listened as her breathing slowed and her heart stopped racing. He knew she wasn't asleep however, and eventually she turned her head from his chest to murmur.

"Do you want me to continue?"

He was more than a little afraid of patching her up again; and for some odd reason, loathe to tear her the medic open again.

"The condensed version, if you will."

He felt her give a small smile against him.

"I became good at what I did. There were more people I killed, more training, and Tabar was a frequent visitor. Two more years passed, and then I had a job to kill a circus acrobat."

Amun must have felt his eyebrows lift because she answered his unasked question. "I have no idea why someone would pay to kill him. I wasn't ever told after the first time. However, I was unable to complete my mission because of someone who was working at the circus."

"You failed?"

She nodded. "My first failure ever. I had planned to simply mess with the props to make it seem like an accident, but when I entered the arena, I saw someone I recognized…"

Seto tightened his grip over her waist at her hesitation.

"It was Montague."

Blue eyes narrowed suspiciously. "The old man?"

Kestrel chuckled again. "Montague. He left the service of my family after I ran away, and spent an entire year looking for me. His search was fruitless, and he began to take on a series of jobs from butler to hotel manager, and currently, was a coordinator for a traveling troop. Well, after seeing him I couldn't go through with it and returned to Tabar to ask for a week to finish the job. He consented."

"And you went back to see Montague?" Kaiba filled in the blanks.

"Yes. I went everyday to each performance and lingered until all the other guests had left. My emotions made me sloppy, and one day I was approached my Montague who had noticed my constant attendance and very politely wanted to know what I found so interesting about their shows. I ran out and didn't attend the next day. However, the day after that I decided to forget about everything and kill the acrobat. By the time I had changed the cables out so he would fall to his death, Montague approached me again and this time, knew who I was. I was so shocked that a pointed to the chord I had changed and left."

"The old man figured it out then?"

The blond gave a nod, and the movement against his chest caused the heat in his navel to spread.

"He must have, as the acrobat changed his name and they faked an accident at the show."

"He protected you?"

"Jealous?" She was teasing him and he was as thankful as he was annoyed for it. "Yes. I returned to Tabar and lived as a tueur for another two months; though I already doubted him. I kept tabs on the circus, and purposefully took a job near them after that. It was a month-long assignment."

"Who…"

"A heavily guarded politician who opposed war. Most of my jobs had to do with preventing or causing a war."

"Ah."

It seemed easier for her to talk, curled up on him like this; but Kaiba was beginning to feel a slight discomfort from the heightened awareness of their bodies.

"I went to see the circus. Montague had apparently been watching for me, and he found me before I could leave. He wanted to meet with me. I agreed. He introduced me to the man I was supposed to kill; the acrobat…His name was Dan Amun. He thanked me for saving his life and explained that he was the son of an infamous warmonger who had run away from an abusive home to join the circus. Montague told me about his adventures abroad and then… I left. I did some work on the mission and went to the circus that night. This time when Montague found me, he showed me around the circus and introduced me to the cast and crew. After awhile, I had to miss the show to kill someone who was troublesome to my job. I didn't show up. When I came to the next show, it was Dan who found me. Apparently, Montague and he had both been worried because I didn't shot up and my job wasn't exactly safe."

Kaiba blinked. "They knew?"

"Montague figured it out. But, we never spoke about it. He simply gave me a lecture and I felt like I was ten again. After that night, Dan became a constant companion whenever I visited. However, I finished the job and my month ran out. The last night I came and told them I wouldn't be coming for a while, Montague prepared at the circus tour schedule and asked me to come see them the next time it was safe. I returned once again. It took me another month to find a mission that was near the circus, and I took it. It was nothing more than an overnighter, however, and so I missed the show and simply left a note where I knew Montague slept, saying that I was fine and sorry I couldn't come see them. The next mission I took was highly classified, multiple-killings, and in their area. It was a six-month mission. Like before, I came to every show; and even waited for Montague and Dan. We celebrated my seventeenth birthday, and I became friendly with the entire cast. They were eccentric people, but beautiful ones. During the day I was observing targets and logging info; but each night I remembered the beauty I once saw in life. Eventually… Dan and I became more than friends."

Kaiba scowled, and if she asked him if he was jealous now he might consider telling the truth.

"He was… everything Tabar wasn't. He was gentle, and saw the best in people; and loved making them smile as a career. He spoke to the animals, watched the stars at night, and made sure all the lost kids found their family. He regretted leaving his brother behind; and hated everything to do with violence. It wasn't hard to fall in love…"

Alright, now he hated this stupid Dan bastard who was so damn perfect. But instead of saying that, he inhaled sharply into her hair, knowing that right now it was he—Seto Kaiba—who held Kestrel Amun.

"He begged me to stay after the six months were over, and even after I explained the dangers; he wouldn't see reason. He got Montague on his side and the cast decided that somehow they would protect me from anything. They used to call it my, 'crazy ex-boss'. I became an acrobat, and for three months; everything was beautiful."

Okay, maybe he didn't exactly hate Dan, not if he had helped her.

"They found you?"

"**She** found me."

"She?" Seto queered.

"Chanda."

Somehow, it made some perfect, ironic, sadistic, sense that it was her former teacher that would be sent to track her.

"When I was out one night, she killed him." Her hands wrapped tighter around him, and her voice lowered. It was hurting again. "I came back to his corpse and her note, informing me that I belonged to my Master."

The CEO could guess what happened next. If nothing else, Amun was protective of those she loved.

"You returned?"

She nodded again. "I met Chanda and allowed her to lead me back to the underground. However, once there I managed to incapacitate her and headed for Tabar. However in the end…"

"You couldn't kill him?"

She shook her head. "There is a certain dependency he instilled in us that made in unbearable to kill him. However, Tabar attempted to… not kill me but… Lee intervened."

"Dr. Lee?"

"Yes. He was too old, however, and Tabar killed him. He apologized to me for being to cowardly to help me all those years ago; and begged me to make it out of the underground alive for his sake. And so I did. I met with Montague, and he left the circus with me."

He didn't ask why she didn't stay. Seto understood the need to escape places of memory.

"I was already well-educated on the body and Montague used his money and got a job at a hotel so we had a roof over our heads and food to eat while I went to medical school."

"For Lee, right?"

She nodded. "I changed my name to Kestrel Amun, adopting my mother's middle name and Dan's last name. As I was in college, I also tended to some unfinished business he had left me. Dan had run away from a bad home, but he was too young to take his brother; who was two years younger than him. He always worried about the boy, and after his death I searched for his family. After a few months, I found them."

"And I'm sure that his warmonger father gave him up without a fight." Seto muttered.

"Actually, I never met his father. I went to his house and spoke with his mother, who cried when she heard about her elder son's death. She arranged for me to pick up Hajime at a time when her husband would be out—"

"Wait," Seto blinked, remembering the accented dark-haired bar-owner who had made them into different people. "Hajime…"

"Yeah, he's the one you're thinking of." She chuckled and he felt it against his skin. "So we adopted Hajime and I became a doctor. A little after Talla came into my life, Hajime left…" He words were growing fainter, but this time he didn't think it was from introspection; but from sheer weariness.

He put a hand over her mouth and glared down at her. "That's enough. You're going to fall asleep on me. It's what you get for staying up since god-knows-when."

He knew she was tired when she didn't argue back, but rested her weight more firmly onto the man.

"I'm sorry…Seto."

Kaiba stared at the sleeping woman, and he let out an exasperated sigh. Gripping her waist, he moved them both so he leaned up against a wall and she remained; using his shoulder as a pillow and curling around his side. He shut his eyes, giving himself a chance to truly process the information while doing his best to ignore the warm weight against him.

It was going to be a long night.

* * *

Because when someone types up 20 pages, your morale conscious should demand that you review.

_Next Chapter: A love cut short… the death of a woman… the rescue of Talla Amun_

* * *

1 Celsius

2 The Average person should fall asleep in less than 5 minutes. People with sleeping disorders take between 10-20 minutes.

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